Low cost finance for low emissions Australian homes
Unlocking clean energy potential for households with competitive loans
CEFC specialist discounted finance encourages home owners and renovators to lift their sustainability ambitions.
Towards zero
with greener homes
Low cost
finance
Benefits
owners, renovators
Expanding the availability of green home loans in Australia’s finance sector, while continuing to strengthen sustainability requirements, gives customers an accessible solution to reduce their carbon footprint. It also demonstrates how “being green” can encourage best practice in the building industry and can benefit both retail customers and the Australian finance industry more widely.Richard LovellExecutive Director - Debt Markets, CEFC
Our investment
Tailored CEFC finance is helping the finance sector develop new green home loans and product offerings that offer low-cost finance solutions for customers wanting to change their energy use.
The market-shaping CEFC-backed green home loan offerings provide discounted finance for customers who buy, build or renovate homes that achieve agreed ratings above the minimum standards of the National Construction Code.
These homes typically require less energy for heating and cooling for comfortable living, and also enable residents to take advantage of the switch to renewable energy in cutting their own emissions.
CEFC investments in green home loans
– The Bank Australia Clean Energy Home Loan, launched in January 2020, supporting homes with a 7 stars or higher Nationwide House Energy Rating Scheme rating. The CEFC finance was extended in April 2022 with the creation of the Bank Australia Eco Plus Clean Energy Home Loan, with qualifying homes also required to use renewable power and be all-electric. CEFC commitment: $120 million
– The Firstmac Green Home Loan, launched in June 2021, provides a discount to encourage borrowers to purchase or build homes meeting or exceeding a 7-star NatHERS rating. CEFC commitment: $108.5 million
– The CommBank Green Home Offer launched in March 2023 extended discounted finance to home builders and renovators whose homes met criteria that aligned with Green Building Council of Australia Green Star standards. The Commonwealth Bank continues to offer a green home loan, without CEFC finance. CEFC commitment: $125 million.
OUR IMPACT
Discounted finance for cleaner, greener homes
The $1 billion CEFC Household Energy Upgrades Fund (HEUF) encourages owners of existing homes to fast track their transition to cheaper clean energy outcomes.
By ‘crowding in’ additional private sector capital alongside HEUF capital, the CEFC is working to create easy-to-access low-cost green finance products, including green home loans, to unlock energy, cost and environmental benefits for households wanting to invest in energy performance initiatives.
Co-financiers manage HEUF products on our behalf and details of current offerings are available on our dedicated HEUF page.
The HEUF draws from our track record in providing discounted loans through co-financiers to both home owners and small businesses to encourage the uptake of clean energy technologies aimed at reducing carbon emissions.
Going green on the home front
Good design can significantly reduce the amount of energy to keep a home comfortable, with little or no additional construction cost.
With the average home having a life span of 50 years or more, home loans backing energy efficient homes have the potential to lock in lower energy consumption over the long term, as well as delivering more comfortable homes that are cheaper to run.
Nationwide House Energy Rating Scheme (NatHERS) assessments are the most common way to meet the minimum energy efficiency requirements of the National Construction Code. In general terms, a 7-star rated home is expected to use some 25 per cent less energy for heating and cooling than a 6-star one.1
The CEFC works with co-financiers to encourage homeowners to reach for those stars with dwellings that require less energy to offer increased thermal comfort.
The power of the co-financing approach
Co-financiers manage customer relationships and make lending decisions on our behalf. The CEFC does not provide finance to individual household borrowers and is not involved in individual financing decisions.
Please note: Borrowers should do their own due diligence on whether green loans will work for them.
1 Climate Council Tents to Castles: Building energy efficient, cost saving Aussie homes
