A landmark partnership between Dandelion Energy and Lennar Corporation is bringing over 1,500 new homes in Colorado that will be equipped with cutting-edge geothermal heating and cooling systems over the next two years. The project, one of the largest residential geothermal deployments in U.S. history, marks a transformational moment for energy-efficient home construction.
"Dandelion's mission is to bring geothermal into the mainstream," Kathy Hannun, Founder and President of Dandelion Energy, told me in a recent interview. "Historically, it’s been viewed as a premium option, out of reach for most homeowners. But we’re changing that—this project proves geothermal can scale and deliver massive value to both builders and buyers."
Why Geothermal—and Why Now?
Geothermal heat pumps (GHPs) tap into the earth’s stable underground temperatures to deliver highly efficient heating and cooling. According to the Department of Energy, widespread adoption of GHPs could eliminate the need for 24,500 miles of new grid transmission lines—roughly eight cross-country trips.
The benefits are tangible. Geothermal offers the low monthly energy bills, and in the case of the Lennar partnership, is expected to save homeowners a combined $30 million over the next 20 years.
"It’s the cleanest, most cost-effective way to heat and cool a home," Hannun says.
COGNITION Smart Data reinforces this consumer trend: nearly 70% of homebuyers say they are more likely to purchase a home with sustainable, energy-efficient systems—and energy costs are among the top three concerns for new homebuyers.
The Power of Scale
What makes this project so groundbreaking isn’t just the technology—it’s the approach.
"Doing 1,500 systems in a concentrated area completely changes the economics," Hannun explains. "Instead of deploying a rig to a single retrofit site and absorbing massive mobilization costs, we’re drilling one loop after another. That alone cuts costs dramatically."
In fact, Dandelion reports that the cost of installing geothermal in new builds like these is less than half the cost of a typical retrofit.
The production home environment also allows Dandelion to work closely with Lennar on home design and HVAC integration, optimizing layouts to reduce equipment needs and qualify for rebates through Colorado’s robust incentive programs, including the state’s geothermal tax credit and Xcel Energy’s all-electric new construction program.
Collaboration is the Catalyst
"This wasn’t just a collaboration between Dandelion and Lennar," Hannun notes. "It was also made possible by forward-thinking policy and utility support. Xcel Energy’s rebates, Colorado’s tax credits, and federal incentives like the 30% geothermal tax credit all played an important role."
Rebates from this project are distributed across stakeholders: Lennar, Dandelion, and the homebuyers themselves—many of whom, according to Hannun, will be pleasantly surprised to receive sizable tax incentives just for buying a home with a geothermal system.
"Helping builders understand how to navigate and stack rebates is part of what we do," Hannun says. "It’s not just about installing systems—it’s about making the economics work for everyone."
Simplicity, Scalability, and Resiliency
Unlike community-scale shared loop systems, each home in this project will have its own dedicated geothermal loop—a design choice based on simplicity and resilience. "Single loops mean lower cost, fewer points of failure, and no ongoing operations and maintenance complexity," Hannun explains. "It's the most scalable and dependable model for residential development."
While this Colorado project is focused on new builds, Dandelion is also gaining traction in the retrofit space with its high-efficiency Dandelion Geo heat pump. Designed to overcome common retrofit barriers—like undersized ductwork, limited electrical capacity, and cold-climate performance—the system delivers warmer air than traditional heat pumps and requires less than half the electric load.
"Our goal is always to reduce complexity and cost," Hannun says. "We want to make it easier for homeowners and builders to say yes to geothermal."
A Template for the Future
Hannun believes this project will be a tipping point—not just for Dandelion, but for the geothermal industry as a whole. "Lennar is a pragmatic builder. They’re only doing this because it makes economic sense for them and their buyers. That kind of stakeholder alignment is what enables scale."
As more states develop incentive frameworks like Colorado’s, and as the industry scales up installation volumes, geothermal may soon shift from niche to norm. "We’ve never had the opportunity to install 1,500 systems over two years," Hannun says. "That level of scale unlocks cost savings, process efficiencies, and supply chain leverage that change everything."
Geothermal heating and cooling isn’t a moonshot anymore—it’s here, it’s scalable, and it’s reshaping how we think about building the future.
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