Energy Efficient Mortgage – Stay Out of the Red and Go Green

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Energy Efficient Mortgage – Stay Out of the Red and Go Green

Everything is trying to become more energy efficient these days, and mortgages are no different. Of course, it’s not the actual mortgage that’s energy efficient, it’s the type of mortgage which you might be able to have, if your house is energy efficient. Energy efficient houses really can save you money whilst helping to save the environment – double whammy! But what’s it all about?

Energy Efficient Mortgage

Energy efficient mortgages helps to make your life a little more comfortable while saving you money. That’s about all most of us want really isn’t it? This federally recognized scheme can be applied to the majority of mortgages with lots of special benefits when you’re buying a house which is already energy efficient or can be transformed into an energy efficient haven with a few added extras and improvements. This means lower utility bills each month, which in turn means more money in your pocket to pay the mortgage which gives the mortgage lender a little more peace of mind (that’s all they want you know, peace of mind that you’ll be able to afford your monthlies without defaulting).

Energy efficient mortgages can help to increase your buying power, you’ll be spending less money on utility bills which in turn means that your debt-to-income ratio can be increased if you buy an energy efficient home. You can get more home for your money, possibly meaning that you can afford to live in a much larger, nicer, energy efficient home than you would be able to ordinarily.

Buyers Benefit from an energy efficient mortgage:

  • They can often qualify for a larger loan on a bigger and better home
  • They can save money on their utilities every single month, from month one
  • The potential re-sale value of their home will also be increased

Sellers Benefit from an energy efficient mortgage:

  • Energy efficient houses generally sell more quickly
  • Your house will be affordable to a larger section of people
  • Your house will stand out against the rest in what is, let’s face it, a pretty competitive market place

Refinancers Benefit from an energy efficient mortgage:

  • You can have all of the benefits of an EEM without having to move house
  • The improvements you make will save you money every month
  • The potential re-sale value of your home will be increased

Home Energy Rating Systems

Home Energy Rating Systems are a bit like calculating how many miles your car will drive to a gallon of gas . . . rating the energy efficiency of your home. It will include things like:

  • Rating of the house “as is”
  • Recommended upgrades to make it more energy efficient in a cost effective way – after all it’s not good spending $20,000 on upgrades if it will take you thirty years worth of utility bills to reap the benefits
  • Estimated cost of the upgrades and how much money you will save
  • Rating of the house after the upgrades
  • Before and after energy costs of running the house

So there you have it, the ins and outs of energy efficient mortgages and how they can help you to stay out of the red by going green.

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