The Bank Australia Clean Energy Home Loan is the first green home loan backed by the CEFC, and will use energy efficiency measurement tools to determine eligibility. The Clean Energy Home Loan offers eligible borrowers 0.4 per cent discount on their home finance. The discounted rate will apply for up to five years for customers who buy or build homes which meet or exceed a minimum of 7-stars under the Nationwide House Energy Rating Scheme (NatHERS). The Bank Australia Clean Energy Home will draw on up to $60 million in CEFC finance, providing the interest rate discount to mortgages below $1.5 million.
NatHERS rates the energy efficiency of a home based on its design. The 7-star rating materially exceeds the minimum standards of the National Construction Code, and homes built to this rating require less energy for heating and cooling. Over time, Bank Australia will extend the benefits of the Clean Energy Home Loan to existing homes, to finance ambitious green home improvements, such as energy monitoring and energy storage systems, solar hot water and energy efficient air conditioning.
Measures that would help homeowners qualify for Bank Australia’s ambitious upgrade product include installing energy monitoring systems, energy storage systems, solar hot water systems and energy efficient air conditioners. The CEFC finance is designed to fill a gap in the market, giving builders and new home buyers a financial incentive to adopt sustainable design principles from the start of the project.
