Prioritizing performance in an evolving market: a recap of BuildRight 2026

The Home Building Association of Greater Portland hosted the annual BuildRight Conference + Expo on April 22–23, stacking the schedule with a variety of presentations, demos, and panel discussions. This year’s conference theme was “BuildRight SellRight: From Permit to Purchase - Building Success at Every Step.”

2026 BuildRight Conference + Expo highlights

Featured presentations included these hot topics:

Heat pumps

• Christopher Dymond from the Northwest Energy Efficiency Alliance and Matt Ryan of Petra Heating explored heat pump design considerations and control strategies that deliver comfort and reliability in their session, “Breaking Up with Backup Heat: Heat Pumps that Stand Alone in Cold Climates.”

• “Build Smarter, Save More: Why Dual-Fuel Heat Pumps are the Best Choice for Builders,” covered the advantages of dual-fuel heat pump systems. Presenters Lindsey Dorman of Carrier and Robert Benjamin of Aris Hydronics explained the three C’s of these systems: compliance, comfort, and cost-savings. By keeping these three things in mind when designing a dual-fuel heat pump system, you can better ensure customer satisfaction.

Energy codes

Strategies to meet new or soon-to-be enforced energy code was another widely covered subject.

• Jonathan Jones of Washington State University utilized his background as an energy and construction consultant for his session about Washington State Energy Code-R 2024. “The Big Picture,” as he put it, provided an overview of requirements, including compliance options, and technical mandates.

• In, “The 2026 ORSC Is Coming: What Builders Need to Know,” Kira Taylor of Energy Trust of Oregon’s EPS New Homes program went over the significant changes expected to be in the next Oregon energy code. Guests Mark Heizer and Kelly Thomas from the Oregon Building Codes Division provided additional clarity during the audience Q&A segment at the end of the session.

Kira Taylor of Energy Trust of Oregon’s EPS New Homes program

Selling high-performance homes

• The session, “Marketing High-Performance Homes in a Way That Feels Human, Builds Trust, and Drives Referrals,” from Ben Bogie of BCP and Charlotte Mustard of IMW Group suggested that leaning into the results of design features rather than focusing solely on the design is an effective strategy.

• In, “From High Efficiency to Revenue Efficiency: Turning High-Performance Homes into Long-Term Profit Centers,” mortgage professional Steve McKanna said, in his keynote presentation, that builders should market to their strengths and differentiate their energy-efficient homes from other new builds—especially older existing homes.

How BuildRight memorialized Dan Wildenhaus’ impact on the industry

Day one concluded with a presentation about the life and career of Dan Wildenhaus. Following the tribute, conference organizers unveiled a new award named in his honor, The Dan Wildenhaus Award for Excellence in Homebuilding, which was presented to his wife. The new award will be presented annually at the BuildRight Conference to distinguished builders in the Northwest.

BuildRight’s impression on first-timers

BetterBuiltNW also commemorated Dan by establishing a BuildRight scholarship in his honor. The scholarship recipients were newer to the industry, in a critical role within their company, or represented an emerging segment of the workforce. Here’s what some of them said about their experience at BuildRight:

"The opportunity to attend this event with people who have been working in this industry for decades was an invaluable asset that helped me connect with mentors.” Guy LeGrant, National Center for Appropriate Technology

“I really liked BuildRight. It felt similar to the RESNET® conference; the sessions were fun to attend, interactive, and tailored to the area I work in.” Alex Newbold, Yakima Building Science LLC

“One of the highlights for me was the Build Zone. Seeing energy-efficient wall assemblies in a visual, hands-on way made a big difference. It’s one thing to hear about it, but actually seeing how it all comes together makes it much more practical. Overall, it was a really solid conference—practical, informative, and worth attending.” Kamala Chambers

Review the session descriptions and presenter pages slides on the BuildRight website for more information about this year’s conference. Session slides from the Home Building Association of Greater Portland will also be made available.