City launches new home renovation grant program The City of Toronto today launched Home Energy Assistance Toronto (HEAT), a new incentive program offering residents up to $1,000 when they upgrade their home insulation. HEAT is open to residents of low-rise residential properties, such as detached and semi-detached houses, and townhomes, and is designed to encourage Torontonians to undertake improvements to increase their home’s energy efficiency and reduce associated greenhouse gas emissions. "Providing grants to make the homes of Torontonians more energy efficient benefits us all," said Toronto Mayor David Miller. "Grants like this allow for the creation of green jobs and decrease our overall energy demands, which in turn reduces greenhouse gas emissions. HEAT will empower residents to act locally to not only save money but to clean our air and protect our environment as well." There are approximately 450,000 low-rise residential buildings in Toronto today, which account for 19 per cent of electricity and 36 per cent of natural gas consumption in the city. According to research from Ontario Power Authority (2006), residents who retrofit their insulation and use electricity to heat and cool their homes will save, on average, more than 2000 kWh of energy, over $150 on their annual energy bill, and 0.5 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions. Residents who use gas will save 600 cubic metres, more than $250 on their annual energy bill, and an estimated 1.2 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions from entering the air. Home Energy Assistance Toronto is a partnership with Federal ecoENERGY Retrofit-Homes, and means that homeowners can now access insulation grants of up to $8,750 in total from all three levels of government. Residents who undertake other important energy efficient upgrades (such as improving toilets, doors, windows or heating and cooling systems) can leverage even more funds - up to a combined $11,000. “Our Government is working with partners like the City of Toronto to deliver results for our economy today and benefits for homeowners and our environment for years to come,” said the Honourable Lisa Raitt, Minister of Natural Resources. “Canadians across the country are participating in the ecoENERGY Retrofit Homes program. This program is creating and protecting jobs in our communities and putting money in the hands of Canadians at a time when they need it most.” To be eligible for HEAT funds, homeowners must follow the steps (web link in Backgrounder) outlined by ecoENERGY Retrofit-Homes. The steps include hiring a Certified Energy Advisor to conduct a Home Energy Assessment, both before and after renovations. Toronto is committed to combating climate change. In 2007, City Council unanimously adopted the Climate Change, Clean Air and Sustainable Energy Action Plan, an environmental framework aimed at reducing Toronto’s greenhouse gas emissions by 80 per cent by 2050. Home Energy Assistance Toronto is an important tactic in this aggressive plan, which is why $9 million has been earmarked for HEAT, which will run until March 2012. It is estimated that approximately 9,000 to 12,000 householders will access these home improvement grants during this period. For more information about HEAT and other City of Toronto environmental programs, visit http://www.livegreentoronto.ca. Toronto is Canada's largest city and sixth largest government, and home to a diverse population of about 2.6 million people. It is the economic engine of Canada and one of the greenest and most creative cities in North America. Toronto has won numerous awards for quality, innovation and efficiency in delivering public services. 2009 marks the 175th anniversary of Toronto's incorporation as a city. Toronto's government is dedicated to prosperity, opportunity and liveability for all its residents. Media contacts: Lawson Oates, Director, Toronto Environment Office, 416-392-9744, loates@toronto.ca Lyne Kyle, Senior Communications Coordinator, 416-397-1410, lkyle@toronto.ca Jocelyne Turner, Press Secretary, Office of the Honourable Lisa Raitt, 613-996-2007 Media Relations, Natural Resources Canada, 613-992-4447, media@nrcan.gc.ca Backgrounder October 14, 2009 City launches HEAT, a way to insulate your home and your wallet The City of Toronto today launched Home Energy Assistance Toronto (HEAT), a new incentive program offering residents up to $1,000 when they upgrade their home insulation. Home Energy Assistance Toronto is open to homeowners of low-rise residential properties including single detached, semi-detached, attached (i.e. row houses) and small multi-unit buildings (three storeys or less and maximum footprint of 600 square metres). HEAT is a partnership with Federal ecoENERGY Retrofit-Homes. To be eligible, homeowners must follow the steps outlined by the Federal program, which include the need to hire an Energy Advisor, certified by Natural Resources Canada (NRCan), to conduct a Home Energy Assessment prior to renovation. For more information on eligibility requirements, visit http://www.ecoaction.gc.ca/homes. The advisor begins by conducting a Home Energy Assessment and creates a personalized Energy Efficiency Evaluation Homeowner Report. This report states the home’s current efficiency rating and features a list of measures that could be completed to reduce its energy consumption, along with grants for each listed improvement. Suggested retrofits could include upgrades to insulation, as well as windows, doors, heating and cooling systems, plus ways to conserve water. In total, ecoENERGY Retrofit-Homes offers residents up to $5,000 in home efficiency grants. Ontario’s Home Energy Savings Program then matches these grants for another $5,000 (maximum). When combined with HEAT, this means that homeowners can now access up to $11,000 in total grants when they upgrade their home insulation, and also implement other important energy efficient upgrades. The amounts specifically related to Home Energy Assistance Toronto by area of insulation include: Ceiling: • Up to $200 from the City of Toronto • Up to $1,500 in Federal and Provincial grants Walls: • Up to $500 from the City of Toronto • Up to $3,750 in Federal and Provincial grants Foundation: • Up to $300 from the City of Toronto • Up to $2,500 in Federal and Provincial grants Visit http://.www.livegreentoronto.ca for more information on the recommended insulation measures for each area of the home. The decision for Toronto to fund insulation upgrades was based on findings from ecoENERGY Retrofit-Homes. According to Natural Resources Canada, 78 per cent of program participants in Ontario have replaced their heating systems. This is the most common measure undertaken compared to only 20 per cent uptake for re-insulating the attic, 12 per cent for basement insulation, and nine per cent for walls. NRCan also completed a customer survey of EnerGuide for Houses (the predecessor to ecoENERGY) in 2005 to identify why participating homeowners did not follow through with all of their recommended energy efficiency upgrades. Insulation was the measure identified as the least commonly employed measure, with “high cost of work” listed as the main deterrent by 62 per cent of customers in Ontario. Initial capital investment was also identified as a barrier. According to research by the Toronto Atmospheric Fund (in collaboration with local contractors), the grant amounts from the City, Province, and Government of Canada should provide residents who upgrade their insulation to the prescribed levels, with approximately 70 per cent of the costs, on average. City Council has approved $9 million in Home Energy Assistance Toronto grants over the next four years. It is estimated that approximately 9,000 to 12,000 residents will access HEAT funds during this time with an average individual savings of 0.5 tonnes (electrically-heated homes) to 1.2 tonnes (gas-heated homes) of greenhouse gas emissions. HEAT funds are available to residents who fulfill the eligibility criteria and complete their home renovations between August 6, 2009 (the date of Council’s decision to implement HEAT) and March 31, 2012. In order to receive the grants, residents need to book a post-retrofit Home Energy Assessment with their Certified Energy Advisor. During this final stage, the Advisor will complete and submit the grant application to NRCan. The cheque from ecoENERGY Retrofit-Homes will arrive approximately 90 days following the post assessment, followed by another four weeks for the cheques from the Province and City of Toronto. For more information on HEAT and other City of Toronto environmental programs, visit http://www.livegreentoronto.ca. Toronto is Canada's largest city and sixth largest government, and home to a diverse population of about 2.6 million people. It is the economic engine of Canada and one of the greenest and most creative cities in North America. Toronto has won numerous awards for quality, innovation and efficiency in delivering public services. 2009 marks the 175th anniversary of Toronto's incorporation as a city. Toronto's government is dedicated to prosperity, opportunity and liveability for all its residents.html/>

But majority of renovators intend to use the tax credit

TORONTO, Oct. 21 /CNW/ - A healthy majority (67 per cent) of Ontario homeowners are planning renovations over the next two years, but that number has decreased slightly from 71 per cent last year, according to a new RBC survey.

More Ontarians say they have completed renovation projects this year (62 per cent) compared with 2008. In fact, 63 per cent of renovators in Ontario plan to take advantage of the federal government's home renovation tax credit this year and half (50 per cent) of those who are utilizing the credit have renovated more due to the tax break, according to the RBC study.

"The renovation tax credit may have spurred more Ontarians to renovate this year and could be part of the reason for this cool-down in renovation intentions," said Doug Crowe, vice-president, Mortgages, Greater Toronto Area, RBC. "However, with 67 per cent planning home improvements, we're still going to see a lot of renovation activity in the province."

According to the RBC survey, conducted by Ipsos Reid, Ontario homeowners expect to spend an average of $12,428 on their home improvements. Of those who plan to finance their renovations, 35 per cent of Ontario homeowners will be using a line of credit, 24 per cent will rely on their credit cards and 18 per cent will add-on to or refinance their mortgage to cover the cost.

Among homeowners who have completed renovation projects in the last two years, the poll found that 71 per cent of respondents in Ontario had a budget for their renovations with 54 per cent going over budget by an average of 25 per cent, the highest in the country.

"Renovating can quickly become expensive with unexpected costs and unrealistic expectations breaking your budget," added Crowe. "By planning ahead with the proper financing options and budget, you can save yourself a lot of headaches later on."

Bathroom and kitchen renovations lead the way as the most popular planned renovation projects in Ontario (38 per cent and 36 per cent, respectively). Among home improvement projects, 50 per cent said they intend to paint and 34 per cent said new floors were on the agenda. Compared with other regions, Ontario homeowners planning to renovate are most likely to enlist the help of a contractor to work on their renovation (40 per cent) while 22 per cent will rely on family and 14 per cent on friends.

Eco-friendly renovation

Three-quarters of Ontario homeowners (74 per cent) would choose an environmentally-friendly approach if it would save money in the long run, even if it costs more now. The majority (68 per cent) believe that 'green' improvements would increase the value of their home, down from 78 per cent in 2008.

    Renovation Intentions Among Regions      Average Spend

    B.C.                65%                        $10129
    Alberta             64%                        $12374
    Sask/Man            73%                        $15133
    Ontario             67%                        $12428
    Quebec              65%                        $ 7734
    Atlantic Canada     72%                        $12586

These are some of the findings of an RBC poll conducted by Ipsos Reid between September 8-16, 2009. The online survey is based on a randomly selected representative sample of 3,120 adult Canadian homeowners including 1,192 Ontario residents. With a representative sample of this size, the results are considered accurate to within +/- 2.8 percentage points, 19 times out of 20, of what they would have been had the entire Ontario adult population been polled. The sample's composition reflects that of the actual Canadian population according to Census data.

Lifting a House a old way rediscovered I recently meet Stanford at his House with my clients to see his lifted house to gain height in the Basement .I was amazed by the look of big windows in the old Bungalow it was like we where above ground. Stanford designed and build a system which lets you lift your house and add a few rows of Blocks to gain height in your Basement.

The idea: inform you of what you should expect before you sign on the dotted line.

"We tend to get calls after the fact ... We want to encourage people to call before," Michaels explains. "This launch is a more proactive approach to educate our consumers."

Homeowners can check up on a number of jobs including carpentry, plumbing and roofing. The new initiative hopes to ensure you know exactly how long a job should take - and at what cost - before entering into a contract.

Project Fix It will continue until Labour Day weekend. But you'll be able to continue to call after that date if you have any questions concerning future renovations. Want to know more? Call (416) 392-3082 for additional info.

A checklist when you're renovating:

• Check with Toronto Building to determine if a construction permit is required for the proposed renovation
• Get at least three quotations from licensed contractors
• Ask the contractors for their City of Toronto business license number and verify the information by calling (416) 392-6700
• Get references from other customers
• Enter into a written and signed contract
• Ensure that all work to be done (including site clean up) is clearly stated in the contract
• Ensure that the full price of the job is in the contract
• Pay the full amount at job completion or include a payment schedule in the contract (payments should correlate with the amount of work done by the contractor)
• Include in the contract the name of the company, the business address, phone number, a completion date, and a City of Toronto License number
• File a complaint if you come across illegal activity by calling (416) 392-3082 or e-mail the Municipal Licensing and Standards licensing mailbox at www.taxiline@toronto.ca.

List courtesy: City of Toronto