CMHC Mortgage Loan Insurance Refund for Home Upgrades

CMHC offers a 10% refund on your mortgage loan insurance premium and an extended 35 year amortization period for purchasing an energy-efficient home, or making energy-efficient renovations

Sponsoring agency: Canadian Housing & Mortgage Corporation (CHMC)
Type of agency: Federal government

Program offerings

10% refund on insurance premiums, and extended 35 year mortgage amortization period.

Eligibility

For a new purchase, the home must be either R2000 certified, have an EnerGuide Rating of 80, or be built by a member of a CMHC-eligible energy-efficient building program. For a Renovation, the pre and post renovation EnerGuide Evaluation must show at least a 5 point improvement, and have a minimum point total of 40.

Application procedure

For a new purchase:
1. Ensure home is rated (EnerGuide or R2000)
2. Talk to your lender and ask for a CMHC insured mortgage.
3. Download & send the CMHC form

For renovations:
1. Get EnerGuide for Homes Evaluation
2. Do renovations.
3. Get post-reno evaluation to show 5 point EnerGuide Improvement, and total of EnerGuide 40.
4. Download & send the CMHC form
5. If refinancing, ask for 35 year amortization for refinanced portion of the mortgage, while the previous loan amount remains at 25 years, resulting in a blended payment amount.

Contact information

Telephone: (604) 731-5733
Website: CMHC - Energy-Efficient Housing Made More Affordable

If 5% down payment, insurance premium is 2.75% of loan amount. If 10% down, then premium is 2%. Scenario: with 10% down and a mortgage of $300,000, then a 2% insurance premium would be $6,000 per year, and then the efficiency program saves you $600 per year.