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ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT 2 possibility to shift to a low-temperature DH is considered as a feasible solution to compensate for the loss of performance of the network in combination with a systematic approach to the refurbishment of the connected buildings. For this purpose, an integrated model for both buildings and network has been developed. Several refurbishment measures for the existing buildings have been investigated and a multiobjective (energy and economic) optimization has been conducted, by means of a genetic algorithm to reduce the computational time. The results highlight that the building refurbishment strongly influence both the energy and economic performance of the DH system. The distribution efficiency is considerably low during summer − only domestic hot water (DHW) need − and when a high number of refurbished buildings is considered in the DH network. Nevertheless, the implementation of the minimum network temperature allows a partial compensation for both the energy and the economic losses deriving from the refurbishment. Although an incentive to promote the use of heat at lower temperature has been considered, the economic loss deriving from the incentive could not be paid back.