Home Energy Retrofit Financing Program
Interest-free financing repaid through property taxes for eligible homeowners installing heat pumps, solar panels, batteries or energy-saving home upgrades in Nanaimo.
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Borrow up to CAD 15,000 from the City for eligible upgrades and repay it through your property taxes over 10 years. The City normally pays your contractor directly after receiving the final invoice and work-completion report. You pay project costs above the loan ceiling yourself.
You can finance a switch from fossil-fuel heating to an all-electric heat pump, exterior insulation, windows, doors and draught-proofing. Dual-fuel heat pumps with fossil-fuel backup, internal wall insulation and soundproofing are excluded. Your home must already have electric heating to finance solar panels. Batteries require solar panels, but they can be installed together under the programme. Up to 30% of the loan can cover accompanying non-energy work, such as asbestos removal needed for heat-pump installation or better filters; at least 70% must fund eligible energy improvements.
A contractor deposit can be financed up to 25% of the total retrofit cost, capped at CAD 5,000. If the City pays a deposit and installation does not go ahead, you must repay that deposit through property taxes.
You can repay the entire balance early; partial lump-sum payments are not accepted. Allow 10 business days for processing, and pay by 31 December to remove the following year's tax charge. On a sale, you can settle the loan in full or transfer it with the property; give the buyer the financing agreement, and the sale year's payment is apportioned by ownership period.
You may combine the loan with rebates, but it cannot cover costs paid by the Energy Savings Program (ESP). If you defer property taxes, tell the Province about the added financing and check continued eligibility using its equity calculator: this financing increases property debt.
Eligibility
- You must be a registered property owner. The home must be within Nanaimo's municipal boundaries. Detached homes qualify, as do duplexes, triplexes, row homes and townhomes with a separate BC Hydro meter for each unit. A manufactured home must be permanently fixed on a foundation, structurally complete with connected services, and outside a manufactured-home park. Property taxes and all municipal utility accounts must be in good standing.
- The assessed property value must not exceed CAD 1.23 million. Total household income must exceed the ESP Level 1 limit unless you are already accepted into ESP. Those limits, based on all residents including children, are CAD 51,100 for one person; 63,600 for two; 78,200 for three; 94,900 for four; 107,600 for five; 121,400 for six; and 135,100 for seven or more. ESP counts combined pre-tax annual income of adults, excluding dependents.
- A separate municipal maximum applies by number of adults: CAD 185,505 for one adult; 230,947 for two; 283,919 for three; and 344,712 for four or more. Income above that limit is ineligible.
- Join the free Home Energy Navigator programme and use an approved contractor. Apply and sign the financing agreement before work starts. Obtain necessary permits and approvals, notify your mortgage lender and confirm the financing complies with your mortgage; you must declare this when signing.
- You do not need an EnerGuide assessment to apply, but the pre-upgrade assessment must be completed before the financing agreement and any work. A certified energy advisor evaluates the home and provides an energy rating, performance report and recommended improvements. Complete the post-upgrade evaluation within 60 days of finishing work. You can reuse an evaluation completed on or after 1 April 2024 if no energy retrofit work has started since it and you submit its Renovation Upgrade Report.
- You may apply for a second home or rented property even if you do not live there. Tell tenants about the planned upgrades and timing. You must not evict or permanently displace tenants, or increase rent because of programme-funded improvements, and must comply with tenancy law and the lease.
How to apply
- Status
- fristen er utløpt
- Åpner
- Søknadsfrist
- Vilkår for søknadsrunden
- Limited places and funding; applications are assessed after the closing date. Council adoption of a local-service bylaw is required before financing.
Apply using the City's online registration form or at the Service and Resource Centre, 411 Dunsmuir Street. Read the programme documents and FAQs first, and provide proof of ownership and the latest tax Notice of Assessment for adults living in the home. Register with Home Energy Navigator.
Applications are reviewed after intake closes. Places and funding are limited, with priority for reducing fossil-fuel use and emissions, energy savings, lower-income applicants and seniors—especially those living alone—and improvements providing cooling or resilience to storms. If accepted, sign the local-service petition and obtain your pre-upgrade evaluation and contractor quotes. At least 51% of the property's owners must sign the petition. Quotes must be valid for at least 30 days. Council must adopt the local-service bylaw; acceptance does not guarantee financing if Council declines it. The published schedule places financing agreements and retrofit starts in April–September 2027.
Sign the financing agreement before work. An addendum is required if the final financed amount increases by more than 5%. Complete the upgrade and submit the final invoice and work-completion report within 10 months of adoption of your property's local-service bylaw. Written extension requests are considered; without timely documents or an extension request, the City can remove you from the programme. The post-upgrade EnerGuide evaluation is due within 60 days of work completion, and its cost can be included in the financing.