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{ Review & Giveaway } BMO Eco Smart Mortgage

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BMO has a pretty cool deal going on right now. They are offering an Eco Smart Mortgage; a premium mortgage rate for homes that meet BMO’s energy efficiency criteria. The offer is good for new mortgages, or for those looking to refinance. We took the leap and moved our mortgage to a different lender last spring. It is amazing how much of a savings one percent or even half a percent can make when you are talking interest on $100,000 or more. BMO wants to encourage and reward Canadian homeowners who are looking to reduce their energy usage, with a special reduced mortgage rate. It’s currently at 3.89% for a five year fixed term. That is insanely low! It is low enough to have me wondering if I want to move my mortgage a second time.

Qualifying for the special rate is relatively simple. You just head over to the BMO website and download their checklist. To qualify the home has to have a minimum of six out of seven of the listed energy efficient features. If you’re serious about taking this step, BMO will arrange for a “third party” home appraiser or energy auditor to come out and confirm the home’s qualifications. You have to pay for this inspection, but if you are getting a mortgage, or refinancing odds are you are going to be paying for a home appraisal of some sort. Their website suggests that it should cost about $50 more to have the home appraiser also certify your house for their energy checklist.

Ok, so on to the checklist. I’m eager to see if my house, which was built in 1954,  will qualify….

#1. High Efficiency Heating System.
We replaced the furnace and AC with a high efficiency system in 2007. Money well spent, as we saw a huge savings on our hydro bills vs the old furnace and air conditioner which came with the house and were 25 years old, if not older.
#2. High Efficiency Air Cooling System or
no Air Cooling System.
Yes, as I was just saying, we recently replaced the AC. Looking good so far…

#3.  Good Quality Attic Insulation.

We have added additional insulation to the home since moving in.  For one, we added insulation to the interior basement walls on the unfinished half of our basement.  Again, money well spent as we saw a noticeable savings on our energy bill and also our basement now maintains a more even temperature range. As the attic is already insulated I’ve never seriously considered that it might require additional insulation. Hmm. It says here that R-49 for fiberglass insulation is between 13.2 and 16.3 inches thick.  I just poked my head in the attic and measured our insulation… Around two to three inches. Wow. That is woefully inadequate.  I think re-insulating the attic just got bumped to the top of my home-improvement to-do list.

#4. All windows in the home must be ENERGY STAR qualified with no crack or air gaps.

The windows around the house are all newer, and in excellent shape (or at least that’s what I was assured by the house inspector), but none of them have Energy Star labels (I didn’t even know it was possible for windows to have that!)  Also the front of the house has two large bay windows that are older, quite possibly original to the house and as much as I hate to say it probably should be replaced.  I am guessing I would fail this one,  based on the front bay windows if nothing else.

#5. Domestic Hot Water System. ENERGY STAR qualified gas storage or condensing hot water heater.

After poking about with a flash light for a bit I was happy to find that the new hot water tank, which my rental company installed last month, is indeed Energy Star certified. Yeah!  There was no logo, but there was a very small plane, hard to find label which reads “This unit complies with Energy Star regulations as of September 2010”.

#6. Doors.  All doors separating heated from unheated spaces (eg. exterior doors leading to an attached garage) must be Energy Star qualified, or metal or fiberglass insulated doors. 

I suspect this doesn’t count
as an energy efficient door
When we bought this house the front door was the original wooden front door from 1954.  It had a cute little metal mailslot in it (which let the wind blow right in), and cracks that you could actually see sunlight through. Yeah. That got replaced pretty quickly. I couldn’t find an Energy Star label on the new door which we installed 3 or 4 years ago. But it is a metal door, that fits snugly. I think it would pass. The side door is also metal. I’m unsure as to when it was installed, as it came with the house.  I think it might past muster.  However, in the basement we have a door which leads to the cold cellar which is really more like a piece of insulated plywood then a door.  I have a sinking suspicion that it would need to be replaced, as I know the house inspector emphasized pointing out that the cold cellar space is OUTSIDE of the house. I doubt we would pass this one.

#7.  At least three major appliances (dishwasher, freezer, refrigerator, and/or washing machine) must be ENERGY STAR qualified.

ENERGY STAR label, check.
I was able to find the ENERGY STAR label on both my dishwasher and my washing machine.  I couldn’t find a label anywhere on the fridge. I’m too lazy to pull the fridge away from the wall to check if the label is on the back. Instead I dug up the instruction manual and checked for an Energy Star label – Nope. I searched the net and found that the ENERGY STAR website has a list of qualifying appliances by make and model number.Then I found the model number on the inside of the fridge and I looked it up online. Wow, I guess my fridge isn’t ENERGY STAR qualified after all. This was quite the surprise to me. I would have sworn that when I bought my appliances when we moved in here  that everything was  ENERGY STAR certified. Go figure. Guess we fail on this one too.

How’d we do?
My overall score is only three out of seven. Ouch. My house failed. Wah. To qualify for the program I would need to buy new windows, a new cellar door and/or a new side door, a new refrigerator, and add additional attic insulation.  Again, I say ouch.  Of course these are all improvements that I know I should be looking into anyways, as I’m sure the energy savings over time would be more then worth it.

So guys, how does your house rate? Would you get a passing score? Are you considering making a few home improvements? A $50 RONA gift card might help with that…

WIN IT

One lucky reader will receive a $50 RONA gift card.

HOW TO ENTER:
If you have questions on how to enter check out my post on How To Enter Blog Giveaways.  Please be sure to include your email in your comments because if I can’t get a hold of you then you can’t win!
Mandatory Entry:
Really simple – just comment below and tell me about your current efforts or future plans to make your home more energy efficient.

 

Bonus Entries:

You can do as many of the following bonus entries as you choose:

– Subscribe to my blog by email.

– Publicly follow Maple Leaf Mommy on Google Friend Connect.

– Follow @ on Twitter and tweet about this giveaway, 1x daily.  If you like you can use this: Hey Canadians! Enter @mapleleafmommy and #Win a $50 RONA #GiftCard from Bank of Montreal. Ends May 15 #Giveaway #Canada http://bit.ly/gDzTOf

GIVEAWAY RULES:
Remember, one comment per entry. The comment IS your entry. I will be drawing a random number, and the corresponding comment number will be the winner.

Please be sure to include your email in your comments because if I can’t get a hold of you then you can’t win!

Giveaway ends on Sunday May 15th, at 11:59 pm EST. The winner will be selected by random.org and notified by email and will have 72 hours to reply back before a new winner is selected. Open to Canadian residents only. Good luck!

Disclosure: I am participating in the BMO Eco Smart Mortgage program by Mom Central Canada on behalf of BMO – Bank of Montreal.  I received a gift card as a thank you for my participation.  The opinions on this blog are my own.

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Comments

  1. Dianne says

    We have replaced most of our appliances now and have choosen energy efficient ones. Our next thing we want to do is get a new energy efficient furnace.

    Reply

  6. Chelsea says

    All of our appliances are energy star certified. The windows are only 5 years old, but could use more insulation, so this is something we are looking into. We do not use A/C. In the future, I'd love to get a high efficieny washer and dryer. river26[at]gmail[dot]com.

    Reply

  8. Glogirl says

    We are installing a new furnace this year which should make our home more energy efficient.ajmizen(at)hotmail(dot)com

    Reply

  17. roswell says

    we are now using low flow shower heads and taps, i am on a big unplug campaign in my house, and with 3 kids and all their gadgets it has been an adjustment, but it is coming along, we have energy efficient lighting too, still more to do but a startstaceyx at telus dot net

    Reply

  23. Donna says

    Just bought an older home myself, the drywall all needs replaced, so as it comes down the insulation is getting replaced.trowbdon at yahoo.ca

    Reply

  29. Anonymous says

    I would definitely purchase energy efficient appliances when my current ones need to be replacedSarainemesis_33012 at yahoo dot com

    Reply

  34. D.Calvert says

    We installed energy efficent furnace and hot water tank and changed half the light bulbs in our house!calvert0 at telus dot net

    Reply

  38. D.Calvert says

    Follow on twitter @dewinner & Tweetedhttp://twitter.com/dewinner/status/61748521732276224calvert0 at telus dot net

    Reply

  39. Jen M says

    I switched to all energy-saving light bulbs. I wash in cold water. And I bake in a little toaster oven to save energy : )jenyasha87 at hotmail dot com

    Reply

  59. dor says

    I plan on putting up ceiling fans instead of central air. I also plan on putting in a tankless hot water tank.dorcontest at gmail dot com

    Reply

  80. Amy C says

    I Follow @MapleLeafMommy on Twitter and tweetedhttp://twitter.com/#!/Butterfly_012/status/61988115732103169@butterfly_012green123apple@gmail.com

    Reply

  81. thesehappydays says

    I would like to replace the lightbulbs in the bathrooms with energy efficient ones. We've done some of the lights in the house already and we are using solar powered lights outside.denimc{at}gmail{dot}com

    Reply

  103. corey says

    I recently insulated the hot water tank with foil wrap in an attempt to max. use and minimize hydro and $.coreybrennan26@hotmail.com

    Reply

  126. katrina Brady says

    We just updated to a front loading washer and dryer – energy efficient and we hope to upgrade to an energy efficient freezersweetpeg at gmail dot com

    Reply

  143. Pam says

    We have replaced all of our windows and toilets. We've insulated our basement and crawl space. We've purchased energy star rated washer and dryer. We plan on replacing our old hot water heater soon.melacan at hotmail dot com

    Reply

  150. Erin says

    We plan on replacing our 15+ year old fridge to cut down on electricity costs. Also, we have some drafty windows to replace that are sucking out a lot of heat!

    Reply

  171. Candi says

    We are planning to upgrade our appliances to new energy efficient ones. Our whole house runs off electric so we are very careful with our lights and only do laundry during off peak hours~~~rckmeade@cogeco.ca

    Reply

  186. Selmada says

    yesterday, I bought and put up blackout curtains in the boys bedroom (the only bedroom actually). Along with keeping out light, they are designed to keep out drafts and keep in the heat! Yeah.homejunk at shaw dot ca

    Reply

  202. Rae T. (Auqakuh) says

    Our current furnace is only mid-efficiency (~80% efficient) and it's on its last legs. We are going to replace it with a high-efficiency furnace at upwards of 98% efficiency.rararomp at gmail dot com

    Reply

  234. Tooth Fairy says

    Really hoping to replace our old furnace with new energy efficient model once we can afford it! ☺ Meanwhile turning out the lights when leaving room an unplugging electrical applicanes + rechargers when not in use is another way to save energy.

    Reply

  277. Anonymous says

    We moved into our 132 year old home last June. So, needless to say it was in much need of some updating. We have since insulated the entire house from top to bottom. We installed a basement blanket, insulated all exterior walls, and the attic. We sealed leaks around windows and doors with caulking. We got rid of the old wood stove and put in a energy efficient pellet stove that burns a variety of sources of renewable fuels. We also switched over to low flow toilet, faucets and put a cover on our water heater. We have also replaced two of four wooden doors with newer insulated exterior doors so far. We still have lots of work to do our old home, but are dedicated to making it as energy efficient as possible. Thanks.shepherdcampbell@hotmail.com

    Reply

  295. Chelsey says

    We put extra insulation in our attic when we first moved in. Next on the list would be new windows. Thanks for the giveaway. mybabyappleseed(at)yahoo(dot)ca

    Reply

  309. flowerchild says

    i follow you on twitter (@flower_child_23) and tweetedhttp://twitter.com/flower_child_23/status/65124165690200064flower_child_23(at)hotmail(dot)com

    Reply

  382. muminab77 says

    I bought an energy efficient house so I don't need to do much but I did switch some lihght switches to timers since my kids love to leave lights on all the timemuminab77 at gmail dot com

    Reply

  384. muminab77 says

    I follow you on Twitter (frugalcanucks) and I tweetedhttp://twitter.com/#!/frugalcanucks/status/66226862413721600muminab77 at gmail dot com

    Reply

  473. muminab77 says

    Daily Tweethttp://twitter.com/#!/frugalcanucks/status/68024753151152128muminab77 at gmail dot com

    Reply

  474. Debbie Kennedy says

    We've got energy efficient light bulbs and new windows a few years ago.cleaningrhouse at yahoo dot com

    Reply

  549. Les says

    We are currently replacing all our basement windows and added more insulation in our laundry room so that we lose less heat. We also just bought a brand new dishwasher to replace our old and very old one.

    Reply

  554. corey says

    I recently wrapped our hot water tank with foil insulation warp in hopes of saving energy and $.coreybrennan26@hotmail.com

    Reply

  578. Kimberly says

    We recycle everything! Composting. We are currently remodeling our bathroom and we have only purchased items that are energy efficient. Even out toilet is 😉

    Reply

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