Retrofitting Your Newly Purchased Home? Save Money with the LiveSmart BC: Efficiency Incentive Program

By Kari Kylo, BC Hydro Power Smart

Purchasing a pre-loved home can be exciting, but then realizing how much new love it really needs to make it more comfortable and reduce its energy bills can be stressful, time-consuming and expensive.

Thankfully, the province of British Columbia, in partnership with BC Hydro and FortisBC, has extended their LiveSmart BC: Efficiency Incentive Program for an additional two years. With the Efficiency Incentive Program, homeowners can receive more than $7,000 in rebates for energy saving improvements and equipment beginning on or after April 1, 2011.

The increased incentives include:

Up to $1,500 for exterior wall insulation, up from $400.
Up to $1,200 for basement insulation, up from $500.
Up to $750 to install attic insulation, up from $310.
Up to $70 per window, door and skylight replacement, up from $40 each.

To be eligible for the Energy Efficiency Program, homeowners must hire a certified energy advisor to conduct an energy-efficiency assessment prior to and after making any eligible improvements. Your Certified Energy Advisor will provide you with a report showing the best ways to reduce your energy use. Your advisor will also give your home an EnerGuide rating. You can use this info to help you decide which upgrades make the most sense for your home and your budget.

Homeowners don’t need to worry about all the paperwork in applying for the incentives, as the energy advisor will do it all for them after the post-retrofit assessment. The program will also pay $150 toward the $325 initial energy assessment cost.

The LiveSmart BC program aims to help more than 40,000 B.C. families protect the investment in their homes while fighting climate change. For a full list of the changes and incentives available to homeowners through the LiveSmart BC: Efficiency Incentive Program visit: www.livesmartbc.ca/rebates.

For more information on other BC Hydro Power Smart residential programs such as the discounts on ENERGY STAR® light bulbs and fixtures as well as rebates on select ENERGY STAR® appliances, visit http://www.bchydro.com/powersmart/residential.com.