New Federal Loans Allow Homeowners to Finance Energy Efficiency

• May 2nd 2011

by Joe Marhamati

Sometimes, the biggest obstacle to making a home more energy efficient is the cost. However, the Departments of Energy and Housing and Urban Development announced a new initiative called PowerSaver last week that will help qualified borrowers in certain parts of the country obtain low-cost loans to make energy-saving improvements to their homes.

Eighteen national, regional and local lenders will participate in the two-year PowerSaver pilot program. Backed by the Federal Housing Administration (FHA), the loans will offer homeowners up to $25,000 to make energy-efficient improvements, including the installation of insulation, duct sealing, replacement doors and windows, HVAC systems, water heaters, solar panels, and geothermal systems.

FHA mortgage insurance will cover up to 90 percent of the loan amount in the event of default, and lenders will retain the remaining risk on each loan.

From the Department of Energy:

“PowerSaver has been carefully designed to meet a need in the marketplace for borrowers who have the ability and motivation to take on modest additional debt to realize the savings over time from home energy improvements. PowerSaver loans are only available to borrowers with good credit, manageable debt and at least some equity in their home (maximum 100% combined loan-to-value).”

The program was launched as part of Vice President Biden’s Middle Class Task Force and is part of the Obama Administration’s larger greening initiatives. Below is the list of FHA PowerSaver approved lenders:

1. Admirals Bank
2. AFC First Financial Corporation
3. Bank of Colorado
4. City of Boise, Idaho
5. Energy Finance Solutions
6. Enterprise Cascadia
7. HomeStreet Bank
8. Neighbor’s Financial Corporation
9. Paramount Equity Mortgage, Inc.
10. Quicken Loans
11. SOFCU Community Credit Union
12. Stonegate Mortgage Corporation
13. Sun West Mortgage Company, Inc.
14. The Bank at Broadmoor
15. University of Virginia Community Credit Union, Inc.
16. Viewtech Financial Services, Inc.
17. WinTrust Mortgage
18. W. J. Bradley Mortgage Capital Corporation

This article originally published at https://dc.urbanturf.com/articles/blog/new_federal_loans_allow_homeowners_to_finance_energy_efficiency/3426.