 GETTING "HELP" SAVING ENERGY & MONEY
Are you about to purchase a house? Renovate a house? Build a new house? Upgrade your air conditioning and heating systems? When you do, you can take advantage of one of the following programs that will help pay for making your home more energy efficient.
1. The Louisiana Home Energy Loan Program ("HELP") offers financial incentives through low-interest loans.
2. The Home Energy Rebate Option ("HERO"), a component of the HELP program, offers actual cash payments for Louisiana residents who make energy improvements to existing homes or when building new homes that are energy efficient.
These programs are administered by the Louisiana Department of Natural Resources (DNR) and are being promoted with help from the Alliance for Affordable Energy. They offer two options to homeowners who improve the energy efficiency of their home by at least 30 percent:
HELP: a 2% interest rate on the portion of the house loan used to make the energy efficiency improvements. This option will be available soon.
HERO: a one-time cash payment toward the cost of making the energy efficiency improvements. This option is available now.
Both the amount eligible for the 2% loan and the amount of cash payment are determined by conducting a Home Energy Rating, which is performed by a state-certified inspector who helps identify the most cost effective energy saving opportunities. Among other things, the rating includes a blower door test, which finds air leaks throughout your home including in your air conditioning duct works.
If you choose the low-interest loan option (HELP), DNR will provide 2% financing for your energy efficiency improvements through any participating lending institution--allowing you to realize an interest and energy cost savings over the entire life of your home loan. On a typical house, "HELP" will save $3,000 to $20,000 over the life of the loan. It may also reduce your required down payment and mortgage insurance premium.
If you choose the "cash-at-closing" (HERO) option, you will receive a cash payment from DNR at the loan closing or upon completion of the energy efficiency improvements equal to 20% of the energy savings--up to a maximum payment of $2,000. On a typical home meeting the requirements, the amount of cash you receive will vary between $500 and $2,000. The payment can be used to pay the closing costs on your home loan or however else you choose.
If you are not planning to treat your whole house but want to make specific energy efficiency improvements such as replacing your air-conditioning unit, "HELP" offers to provide half of the financing for prequalifiying efficiency measures at a 2% interest rate. This option does not require a home energy rating.
Joan Watson of Amite recently used a "HELP" loan to pay part of the cost of re-insulating her home, installing a high efficiency central air conditioning and heating system, and purchasing new energy efficient appliances.
"I thought it was great, "she said. "Without it, I don't know when I would have been able to have done it. The interest was great; that was amazing. The (repayment plan) on it is affordable, even to someone on a limited income."
For further information on "HELP" or "HERO", call DNR's toll-free hotline at 1-800-836-9589.
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