How to make the most of that new, federal, 'green' home retrofit grant

When the federal government launched its Canada Greener Homes Grant a week ago, the interest level was high enough tocrash the websitetemporarily. The program has receivedat least30,000applications so far.

Now, energy auditors and contractors say they're fieldinga wave of inquiries from homeowners keen to apply for what could amount to$5,600 in federalsupport per household.

"There's literally thousands of homeowners calling," said Peter Sundberg, executive director of City Green Solutions, an energy efficiency non-profit in British Columbia. "I think there is extremely high demand already."

But despite the high uptake, there are early concerns about the size and scopeof the grant program.

"There's a couple of challenges with this program," said Tom-Pierre Frapp-Snclauze, director of buildings and urban solutions at the Pembina Institute.

To answer some of those outstanding questions and explorethe program's limits, CBC News took a deeper dive into the details ofCanada Greener Homes Grant.

Who is eligible?

Homeowners, obviously. But applicants must alsomeet some other conditionsbefore applying online:

• They must prove they live in the house; landlords who live off-site are not eligible.
• The home must bea single orsemi-detached house, a row house, atownhome, anall-season cottageor a certain type of mobile home or houseboat.
• Although condos generally aren't eligible, condoowners in low-rise buildings may qualify.
• First Nation band councils, land claims organizations and Indigenous housing management bodies can apply for the grant.
• New homes are not eligible.

Whichupgrades qualify?

According to Natural Resources Canada (NRCAN),the federal department that administers the program, these are the projects that qualify for the grant:

• Insulation (up to $5,000)
• Air-sealing to improve air-tightness (up to $1,000)
• Replacing windows and doors (up to $5,000)
• Installing heat pumps and hot water equipment (up to $5,000)
• Installing solar panels (up to $5,000)
• Resiliency measures like batteries, foundation waterproofing and roofing membranes (up to $2,625)
• Installing asmart thermostat (up to $50 but must be combined with another retrofit)

Materials and equipment, NRCAN says, must be purchased in Canada or from a Canadian online distributor.

Are there strings attached?

Homeowners won't receive the money upfront. The grantonly arrives after they've spent the money in some casesa considerable amount. To qualify, ahomeownermust firstundergo an energy audit at their own expense, hire contractors, pay for materials and then pass a final follow-up energy audit again, out of pocket.

Once the upgrades are certified, the government says it will reimburse homeowners and the money should arrive within a month. But a homeowner isn't guaranteedthe maximum grant of$5,600. The amount of the grantdepends on the audit conducted when the work is done.

The Pembina Institute saysthat the cost ofextensive retrofits tocut energy bills and reduce emissionslikely wouldexceed the value of thegrant. Such work can range in costfrom $30,000 up to$100,000 for a single family home.

"This is not free money," said Frapp-Snclauze.

How can a homeownerget the most bang for the buck?

Experts say that homeowners should carefully consider their renovation priorities before jumping in. Is the house too hot in the summer? Is it drafty in the winter? Is it timeto fix that leaky foundation? How big is the building's carbon footprint? Homes and buildings account for 18 percent of the country's carbonemissions.

Because the surge in demand for the program is driving upwait times for energy advisers and contractors, applicants probably will have towait longer than they'd likefor repairs to begin.

"I think there's such high demand right now, and there's only so much capacity in all the provinces and to be able to respond to this," Sundberg said. "It's probably best to pause for a moment, think about what the upgrades you might want to do, potentially think about what kind of contractors you would want to work with."

And there's no rush; the Greener Homes Grant will be available for the next seven years. In fact, by thinking through theirhome retrofit goals in advance, many homeowners may decideit's quicker and cheaper to do the workwithout waiting forgovernment help.

On the other hand, it might be better to wait before applying because other orders of government may end up getting into thegrant game themselves.Although B.C., Quebec and Nova Scotia already offer similar supports, other regions could soon announce their own programs,which could be combined with thefederal one.

Meanwhile, somemunicipal governments including Edmonton and Torontoare offering their ownhome retrofit assistance tied to a homeowner's property taxes. Such municipalprograms are better known as Property Assessed Clean Energy, or PACE for short.

"So with the federal government getting involved, the hope is that this grant can really work in a larger system of supports for Canadians," said Brendan Haley, apolicy director at Efficiency Canada.

And sometime over the summer,the federal government is expectedto roll out an interest-free retrofit loan program that could provide up to $40,000 in loan capital per household.

Here's another possible reason to wait. Home renosfrequently require multiple contractors. As demand for retrofits increases, we might see more companies offering homeowners one-stop or "turnkey" solutions, saidFrapp-Snclauze.

What's available to those whodon't qualify for this program?

Energy efficiency advocates say this is the glaring problem with the program:it leaves out renters and homeownerswho can't afford tospend the money upfront.

"A policy gap is the lack of a program that's specifically targeted to low-income Canadians in particular," Haley said.

One non-profit that works withmultilingual and multicultural communities suggests that, where possible, renters should upgrade toprogrammable or "smart" thermostats and plug any cracks in doors and windows that letcold air in.

"Heating your space and heating your water is what60 per cent of your bill is made of," said Yasmin Abraham, the vice president and co-founder of Empower Me.

Ultimately, however, there's a limit to what low-income households and renters canafford todo.Abraham called on the federal government to provide programs that serve the needs of every Canadian household.