Toronto Homeowners Can Borrow Up To $125K Interest-Free & Make Houses More Energy-Efficient
The money can be used towards rooftop solar panels, new windows and more.
City of Toronto. Right: A row of semi-detached houses in Toronto.
If you're currently retrofitting your home to be more energy-efficient, you can get over $100,000 from the City of Toronto to help you do that.
On Thursday, July 7, the city announced it will officially launch its Home Energy Loan Program (HELP), which can give homeowners zero-interest loans and other incentives to modify their houses to be more energy-efficient and better for the environment.
While the HELP program has been around since 2014, Toronto is now offering these interest-free zero loans over low-interest ones in an effort to encourage more people to opt into the program and help reduce how much hot water and natural gas the community is using.
"Currently, homes and buildings are the largest sources of emissions in Toronto, generating approximately 57 per cent of total community-wide emissions," the news release reads.
So, for a short time, homeowners in the 6ix can get up to $125,000 for up to 15 years. But, 20-year terms are also available if residents are using the money to retrofit their house with new windows, electric heat pumps, geothermal and a rooftop solar PV.
Other home improvements the money can be used towards include insulation, tankless water heaters, solar hot water systems, EV charging stations and more.
There are also some incentives that are going to be offered by the city during this time. Anyone who replaces their home's natural gas furnace and A/C unit for electric heat pumps or installs solar panels on their roof along with other deep retrofits to cut down their emissions will be able to access them.
More homeowners will be eligible for the HELP program as the city expanded the list of eligibility to also include tax-exempt properties like supportive housing and nonprofit homes. Anyone who owns a detached, semi-detached, townhouse, duplex or triplex apartment building can still apply for the loans.
On top of this, Toronto homeowners might also be eligible for the Canada Greener Homes Grant, which can give them up to $5,000 to make their houses more environmentally friendly.
But these zero-interest loans and incentives won't be around forever. The city said it will only be available "until the funding allocated for each is fully subscribed, after which homeowners can continue to access low-interest loans."
This article's cover image was used for illustrative purposes only.