Introducing Thermostat Controls: Reduce HVAC Energy Usage by up to $15,000 with ButterflyMX

 

 

During lease-up, vacant apartments can be heating or cooling long before residents move in unless someone remembers to adjust the thermostat. For property owners paying those utilities, that creates an operating expense that can become especially significant during lease-up.

For example, a 300-unit new development averaging 50% vacancy during a first-year lease-up could represent up to $15,000 in HVAC savings using ENERGY STAR’s approximately $100 annual smart-thermostat savings estimate for homes unoccupied much of the day as a directional benchmark.

Cost savings continue after a property reaches stabilization. Using CBRE’s 4.3% U.S. multifamily vacancy benchmark, a 300-unit property will have roughly 13 vacant units at a given time. When you apply the same ENERGY STAR benchmark, you can expect approximately $1,290 in recurring annual operating expense savings when ownership pays those utilities. If those savings flow through to NOI at a 5.5% capitalization rate, they could equate to $23,500 in property value impact.

ButterflyMX Thermostat Controls help properties capture those energy savings automatically. It connects supported smart thermostats to the same property technology workflows that property teams already use for access management. During vacancies, ButterflyMX can automatically apply the property’s configured vacant schedule or turn off the thermostat. Then, when a new resident moves in, the occupied schedule takes effect.

The result is lower HVAC-related energy costs in vacant apartments, with less manual thermostat management for onsite teams and centralized climate control alongside existing ButterflyMX access workflows.

Navigate this post:

• What are Thermostat Controls?
• How Thermostat Controls reduces property operating costs
• How much could Thermostat Controls save?
• How thermostat automation works
• Resident thermostat controls
• Supported thermostats and requirements

 

 

What are Thermostat Controls?

ButterflyMX Thermostat Controls helps multifamily properties reduce HVAC costs in vacant apartments by connecting supported Honeywell Home WiFi thermostats to apartment occupancy in the ButterflyMX OS, allowing property teams to manage climate controls alongside the occupancy and access workflows they already use.

When an apartment’s occupancy status changes in the ButterflyMX OS, its thermostat can automatically switch to the appropriate configured settings, turning energy-savings from a recurring manual task into an automated workflow, reducing unnecessary heating and cooling in vacant apartments, and cutting energy costs.

Additionally, property managers can centrally view and manage supported thermostats in vacant apartments and common spaces to adjust:

• Temperature
• Mode
• Fan settings
• Schedules
• Holds
• Scheduled overrides

Teams can also prepare vacant apartments for tours and monitor temperature, humidity, and device status where supported.

 

How Thermostat Controls reduces property operating costs

Reduce HVAC costs in vacant apartments

Thermostat Controls automatically applies a property’s configured vacant settings when an apartment becomes vacant, helping reduce unnecessary HVAC use when ownership pays the utility bill.

ENERGY STAR estimates that nearly half of the average U.S. household’s annual energy bill goes toward heating and cooling. It also estimates that homes unoccupied much of the day can save approximately $100 per year with an ENERGY STAR-certified smart thermostat.

Actual savings at your property will vary based on factors including climate, HVAC equipment, utility rates, vacancy duration, thermostat settings, and who pays the utility bill.

 

Make energy savings automatic

Currently, property staff must remember to adjust thermostats after move-outs and change them again when new residents move in. Missed or delayed adjustments can leave vacant apartments heating or cooling at occupied settings for longer than necessary.

With Thermostat Controls, when a unit becomes vacant, its thermostat can automatically move to the configured vacant schedule or Off setting. When the unit becomes occupied, the occupied schedule takes over.

 

Prepare vacant apartments for tours without leaving HVAC running

Property teams can keep vacant apartments at their configured energy-saving settings, then use scheduled overrides to temporarily pre-heat or pre-cool a unit before a prospect arrives. Once the scheduled period ends, the thermostat can automatically return to its vacant settings, reducing unnecessary energy use and the utility costs that come with it.

 

Manage climate controls alongside access

Property teams can centrally view and manage supported thermostats in vacant apartments and common spaces, including temperature, mode, fan settings, schedules, holds, and scheduled overrides, through the same ButterflyMX OS they already use for access.

 

Reduce repetitive thermostat management

By automating occupancy-based changes and giving teams centralized controls, Thermostat Controls reduces routine thermostat adjustments that require on-site staff intervention, especially during move-outs, turnovers, leasing tours, and move-ins.

The primary financial benefit is lower energy costs from unnecessary HVAC use in vacant apartments, while reduced manual work and centralized management provide additional operational savings for property teams.

 

Temperature, humidity, and device alerts

Where supported, teams can configure temperature and humidity thresholds and receive alerts when readings fall outside those ranges. ButterflyMX can also send email alerts when a supported thermostat has been offline for 12 hours or longer.

These alerts can help staff investigate sooner, rather than discovering an issue after a resident complaint or after conditions have worsened and avoidable repair costs have increased.

 

How much could Thermostat Controls save?

The potential savings can become meaningful during lease-up, when a large share of a new development may remain vacant for weeks or months.

Consider a 300-unit property leasing up over one year:

300 units × 50% average vacancy = 150 vacant-unit equivalents

Using ENERGY STAR’s approximately $100 annual savings estimate for homes unoccupied much of the day as a directional benchmark:

150 vacant-unit equivalents × $100 = approximately $15,000 in potential HVAC savings during lease-up.

The savings opportunity can continue after a property stabilizes.

CBRE reported a 4.3% U.S. multifamily vacancy rate in Q2 2026. At a 300-unit property, that represents roughly 13 vacant apartments at a given time.

Using the same ENERGY STAR benchmark:

300 units x 4.3% vacancy x $100 = approximately $1,290 in recurring annual operating￾expense savings.

If ownership pays the utility bills in those vacant units, that $1,290 in recurring OpEx savings could represent approximately $1,290 in NOI improvement.

At a 5.5% capitalization rate:

$1,290 / 5.5% = approximately $23,500 in potential property value impact.

*These figures are illustrative estimates, not measured ButterflyMX customer results. Actual savings may be materially higher or lower depending on climate, HVAC equipment, utility rates, vacancy patterns, thermostat settings, resident behavior, and utility responsibility.

 

Watch how ButterflyMX works:

 

How thermostat automation works

Thermostat automation works like this:

1. The property configures its thermostat settings. Teams define the appropriate schedules or settings for occupied and vacant apartments.
2. An apartment’s occupancy status changes in ButterflyMX. For example, a unit may move from occupied to vacant after a resident moves out.
3. The supported thermostat adjusts automatically. When the unit becomes vacant, the thermostat applies the property’s configured settings for the apartment’s new occupancy status.
4. The occupied settings return when a resident moves in. Once the unit becomes occupied again, the thermostat can automatically return to the configured occupied schedule.

 

Resident thermostat controls for better experiences

Thermostat Controls focuses energy-saving automation on vacant apartments, while occupied units remain resident-controlled through the ButterflyMX app.

Once a resident moves in, the thermostat can automatically switch from the property’s vacant settings to the configured occupied schedule. Residents can then control their supported thermostat directly through ButterflyMX.

Property teams retain visibility and can make adjustments when needed. For example, they can establish building-wide minimum and maximum temperature limits, configurable from 50°F to 90°F.

 

Supported thermostats and requirements

Thermostat Controls is for multifamily communities with managed WiFi.

Managed WiFi is required so supported thermostats can reliably connect to the ButterflyMX OS and respond to occupancy-based automations, scheduled overrides, and remote management.

Thermostat Controls currently supports the following Honeywell Home WiFi thermostats from Resideo:

• Honeywell Home T6 WiFi thermostat
• Honeywell Home T10 WiFi thermostat

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