"For homes built after 1980, we see that the least energy intensive building type is actually single family homes, something the Residential Energy Consumption Survey confirms. This was surprising to me, since I frequently read stories about how dense urban areas are more energy efficient"
https://constructionphysics.substack.com/p/looking-at-energy-use-in-us-residential
This:
QuoteI suspect the mechanism here is that some types of energy use don't scale linearly with home size - a 1000 square foot apartment and a 2000 square foot house, for instance, might both use similar amounts of energy for the fridge, dishwasher, microwave, washer/dryer, etc. So smaller housing units use more energy per square foot despite using less energy overall.
The same is true for construction cost. If you want to bring down the cost per square foot, you build a giant house with a huge family room.
>>I frequently read stories about how dense urban areas are more energy efficient
That assertion usually rests on more a efficient transportation section, not the inherent energy efficiencies of the dwellings.