GET STARTED
STEP 0: AM I ELIGIBLE?
In general, people are eligible for the grant if:
- They own the home and currently live in the home
- Energy upgrades have not begun yet (some work can be undertaken before having the initial evaluation, such as minor interior renovations, kitchen appliance upgrades, etc.)
- the home is more than 6 months old
- The house is a single family dwelling, or a single family dwelling with one secondary suite (note that houses with more than 2 dwelling units are still eligible for some grants, but eligibility depends on additional factors – contact Our Energy to learn more)
See full eligibility here: Greener Homes Eligibility
Which renovations and upgrades are eligible?
- Air-sealing
- Windows and doors replacement
- Adding a thermostat (must be combined with other upgrades)
- Space heating (install a heat pump)
- Water heating (install a heat pump water heater)
- Renewable energy (install solar panels)
See more at the link: Eligible Upgrades for the Greener Homes Grant
STEP1: APPLY FOR THE GRANT (GET THE AP#)
** It is recommended to try applying for the grant on your own; most of it is very straight forward. If you have trouble with any specific parts, or if you prefer guidance through the process, you can go through the steps listed below or watch the tutorial video:
HOW TO APPLY FOR THE GREENER HOMES GRANT?
- Go to the link: Greener Homes Grant
- View the eligible upgrades list
- Click on the logo for your bank that you use online banking with
- Sign in using your online banking information (this is a secure portal that authenticates your identity using your bank account)
- Answer authentication questions if necessary
- Read the terms and conditions, select Accept and Continue
- If you see an error here “Single Sign-On Error”, this means that someone may have already tried to log in. Try finding the original login details, and then try using a different web browser. If none of these things work, you will have to phone the program for help (number below)
- The next page has 5 fields for your personal information – fill these out and click Register
- You will be notified that an email has been sent for authentication.
- Find the email (make sure to check spam and junk folders), the email subject will say: “Verify Your Email Address for the Canada Greener Homes Grant \\…”
- Open the email and click the link to confirm your email address
- This will take you to a confirmation web page – click Continue
- The click Finish Logging In
- Click on New Application
- Read and click I Agree for each section, and click Next
- Enter the property information for your home. Some specific fields that can be challenging are noted below:
- For single family homes, or homes that have 1 secondary suite, select Single and semi-detached homes (or other type of home, depending – mobile homes, floating homes)
- *** Single Family Homes with one secondary suite also qualify now! (this change was made to the program since the tutorial video was released)
- You can find the Property Tax Bill Number from https://www.bcassessment.ca/ – enter your address and find it from the automatic dropdown. The number is the Area-Jurisdiction-Roll number (under the address) – you can copy and paste this into the application.
- Don’t click the box I already have a recent EnerGuide Evaluation of my home unless you have already completed the evaluation and have received the reports.
- Click Next
- Choose a Service Organization
- select EnerTech Solutions Ltd
- Upload a photo of your drivers license (see tutorial video for help with doing this)
- Scroll down, click the box to indicate I have read, understood and agree to the Declaration above
- Click Next
- See the automatic confirmation email that will be sent from the Greener Homes program which confirms the application has been received and gives an AP# (AP123456, for example)
- Send Our Energy your AP#!
Need help with the grant? You can call us at Our Energy if you have general questions. For help with the actual application process or if you are running into errors, you will need to contact the Greener Homes program directly. We recommend contacting them by phone (it can take up to 40 days to hear back from an email response!)
Contact the Greener Homes program:
Phone: 1-833-674-8282
TTY: 1-800-465-7735
Email: canadagreenerhomesgrant-subventionmaisonsvertes@nrcan-rncan.gc.ca
STEP2: GET THE INITIAL ENERGY EVALUATION
THE PRE-UPGRADE ENERGUIDE EVALUATION
Reach out to Our Energy by phone (778-939-4388) or email (service@ourenergyadvising.ca) to schedule the energy evaluation. Make sure to tell us what type of upgrades you are planning on making and when the work is scheduled to begin.
Prepare for the energy evaluation:
- Make sure to have your AP# – we will need to see this for the evaluation
- Prepare to authenticate your home ownership – we will need to see either your property assessment from BC Assessment (the mailed version with your name), or we will need to see your ID that shows you live at the home + a property tax bill or the house title
- The evaluation takes about 1.5 hours at the house – we need to access the heating and hot water system, all exterior windows and doors, the basement & crawlspace (if any), and we need to look up into the attic.
- The evaluation includes a blower door test – we install a fan on the front door to depressurize the home, so make sure that all exterior windows and doors are intact and closed for the evaluation
* REMEMBER THAT YOU MUST HAVE THE INITIAL ENERGY EVALUATION BEFORE MAKING ENERGY UPGRADES
STEP3: MAKE YOUR ENERGY UPGRADES
Now that the initial energy evaluation is complete, you can begin making upgrades. These can happen as soon as the site visit is done – even the same day following the site visit! You don’t need to wait for your reports to begin upgrades.
REFERRAL CONTRACTORS (VERIFIED BY OUR ENERGY)
Trust Our Energy to connect you with exceptional contractors – we know who they are! We have worked beside these companies over the years and have seen quality service provided for many happy customers. Whether you are upgrading to a heat pump, adding new windows & doors, adding solar panels, insulation, or more, trust us to recommend reliable companies. We will provide you with multiple contractors for each upgrade type; we recommend getting more than 1 quote and going with the one you feel most comfortable with.
Which renovations and upgrades are eligible?
Eligible upgrades include: Air-sealing, windows and doors replacement, adding a thermostat (must be combined with other upgrades), space heating (install a heat pump), water heating (install a heat pump water heater), renewable energy (install solar panels)
See more at the link: Eligible Upgrades for the Greener Homes Grant
NOTE: You can also apply for the loan at this time (up to $40,000 interest free)
Click the link: Canada Greener Homes Loan
- Apply to the Canada Greener Homes Grant (In order to apply for the loan, you must first apply and be eligible for the Canada Greener Homes Grant)
- Get a pre-retrofit EnerGuide evaluation (STEP2 on this page)
- Plan your retrofits and get quotes from contractors
- You can’t ask for a bigger loan if you decide to do more retrofits later, so it’s important to plan your work in advance before applying for the loan.
- Submit an application to the loan
- Log in to your Canada Greener Homes account, and click the button to access the loan portal. To submit your application, you will have to upload documentation to the loan portal, such as:
- your property tax statement
- your driver’s licence or other government-issued ID, together with a utility bill
- a confirmation of income and employment (for example, a job letter or a T4 slip)
- your quotes from contractors
- Based on your application, the program will calculate the maximum loan amount you are approved for. To activate your loan offer, you will be asked to carefully review the information and accept the loan agreement.
- Please note: a portion of the loan can be delivered to you up front in order to pay applicable down payments to contractors. The balance of the loan will be delivered once the retrofits have been successfully completed and verified through a post-retrofit evaluation.
- Upfront costs
- You can access a portion* of your loan funds in advance to pay for upfront costs, such as paying a deposit to your contractor. You can request the advance on your loan during your application by demonstrating that an upfront payment is required. You can do that by uploading the quotes you received from contractors and by entering the deposit amounts required to do the retrofit.
- * Up to a maximum of 15% of the eligible cost of retrofits requiring an upfront payment. This amount is increased to 25% if your property is located in the North or off grid.
- Complete your retrofits and keep receipts and invoices
- Get a post-retrofit EnerGuide evaluation
- Receive your loan amount
- The energy advisor will update the information related to your final evaluation in the Canada Greener Homes portal, including the estimates of your final grant amount. You will also have to upload all your final invoices and receipts to the Canada Greener Homes portal, and receipts for the retrofits to the loan portal. The loan amount will be reviewed again based on the actual cost of the completed retrofits.
- If the actual costs of the completed retrofits are lower than the initial cost estimates, the loan amount will be decreased
- If the actual costs are higher than the initial cost estimate, the loan amount will not be increased
- The final approved loan amount will be deposited into your bank account (less the initial advance, if you received one) within 10 days.
- Repay your loan over time
- You will receive detailed information on the repayment of your loan over the 10-year period.
- This loan does not apply to the following work:
- work that you’ve already started or completed
- retrofits that haven’t been recommended by an energy advisor
- retrofits that are not eligible for a Canada Greener Homes Grant
- retrofits that aren’t included in your application
- Log in to your Canada Greener Homes account, and click the button to access the loan portal. To submit your application, you will have to upload documentation to the loan portal, such as:
STEP4: GET THE FINAL ENERGY EVALUATION
THE POST-UPGRADE ENERGUIDE EVALUATION
Reach out to Our Energy by phone (778-939-4388) or email (service@ourenergyadvising.ca) to schedule the final energy evaluation.
Prepare for the energy evaluation:
- Make sure to have all your invoices and receipts ready – we will need to see these when we come to inspect the upgrades
- The evaluation takes about 40 minutes at the house – we need to inspect any energy upgrades that were made
- The evaluation includes a blower door test (again) – we install a fan on the front door to depressurize the home, so make sure that all exterior windows and doors are intact and closed for the evaluation
STEP5: GET YOUR MONEY!
Now that you have had the initial evaluation, you have made upgrades, and you have had the final evaluation, we are ready to apply for the grant. Our Energy will upload the energy reports and authorization forms. You will get an email notifying you that action is required on your account – login and upload your invoices and receipts for the energy evaluations (both) and for all upgrades, and click apply! The money will come automatically into your account.