Sustainable Home Loans NZ: What’s on Offer

If you want to make your home more eco friendly and save money by adding insulation, double glazing or solar systems, there are low cost sustainable home loans available from the banks. You can even borrow money at 1% to buy a new electric car! Canstar looks at what’s on offer.

Sustainable Home Loans: ANZ’s Good Energy Home Loan?

The Good Energy Home Loan is a top-up for existing ANZ home loan customers that can be used to pay for sustainable home initiatives. It provides access up to $80,000 at any one time ($500,000 in total) to undertake sustainable initiatives, at a special 1% interest rate fixed for three years.

→Related article: Personal Loan vs a Home Loan Top-Up: Which is Right for You?

What can you use it for?

The Good Energy Home Loan can be used for:

Important details

ANZ’s Good Energy Home Loan offers a special 1% interest rate for three years. After the fixed-rate period expires, you have to move the remainder of the loan to one of the bank’s regular mortgage rates, either fixed or floating.

You can borrow up to $80,000 at any one time, up to a limit of $500,000. That means you can apply for multiple home loan top-ups, to undertake several different projects, as long as the total doesn’t exceed $80,000.

For the loan application, you’ll need to get a quote. For example, for insulation, you’ll need a quote for both the supply and installation. Depending on the work required, you may also need further documentation, such as any necessary local council consents.

Sustainable Home Loans: ASB Better Homes Top Up

The Better Homes Top Up is available to help to make your home drier, warmer, or more energy efficient, or to help you purchase a hybrid or electric vehicle. It provides access up to a maximum of $80,000 to undertake sustainable initiatives, at a special 1% interest rate fixed for three years.

What can you use it for?

The Good Energy Home Loan can be used for:

Important details

ASB’s Better Homes Top Up offers a special 1% interest rate for three years for existing ASB customers. A minimum equity of 20% for owner-occupied properties and 40% for investment properties applies.

After the fixed-rate period expires, you have to move the remainder of the loan to one of the bank’s regular mortgage rates, either fixed or floating.

You can borrow up to $80,000, that means you can apply for multiple home loan top-ups, to undertake several different projects, as long as the total doesn’t exceed $80,000.

For the loan application, you’ll need to get a quote. For example, for insulation, you’ll need a quote for both the supply and installation. Depending on the work required, you may also need further documentation, such as any necessary local council consents.

Sustainable Home Loans: BNZ Green Home Loan Top Up

The Green Home Loan Top Up from BNZ is available to help you undertake sustainable initiatives at your home. For example, to make your home drier, warmer or more energy efficient, or to help you purchase a plug-in hybrid or electric vehicle. It provides access to a maximum of $80,000 at a special 1% interest rate fixed for three years.

What can you use it for?

The Good Energy Home Loan can be used for:

Important details

BNZ’s Green Home Loan Top Up offers a special 1% interest rate for three years for existing BNZ customers. After the fixed-rate period expires, you have to move the remainder of the loan to one of the bank’s regular mortgage rates, either fixed or floating.

You can borrow up to $80,000, that means you can apply for multiple home loan top-ups, to undertake several different projects, as long as the total doesn’t exceed $80,000. There is also a minimum top-up amount of $5000.

For the loan application, you’ll need to get a quote. For example, for insulation, you’ll need a quote for both the supply and installation. Depending on the work required, you may also need further documentation, such as any necessary local council consents.

Sustainable Home Loans: Kiwibank Sustainable Energy Loan

Rather than a low-interest loan, Kiwibank’s Sustainable Energy Loan provides cash towards the installation of sustainable energy for your home. If you borrow more than $5000, Kiwibank will contribute up to $2000 over four years towards the cost of the system.

What can you use it for?

The Sustainable Energy Loan can be used for:

• Solar power systems
• Small-scale hydro, wind energy or geothermal resources

Systems must be for general public use and supplied and installed by a company that’s a member of the Sustainable Electricity Association of New Zealand (SEANZ).

Important details

The $2000 subsidy is paid in three instalments: $800 at the end of the first year and $400 at the end of each of the following three years.

Kiwibank’s Sustainable Energy Loans are charged at the bank’s variable home loan rate. The minimum loan term is seven years and the maximum term is 10 years. Top-up fees are waived if you are an existing Kiwibank Home Loan customer. Loan available for inclusion of systems in new builds.

Sustainable Home Loans: Westpac Warm Up

Westpac will loan you up to $40,000 interest free for five years to invest in heat pumps, insulation and more.

What can you use it for?

The Good Energy Home Loan can be used for:

Important details

Westpac Warm Up is available for new or current Westpac Choices Home Loan customers. No establishment fee applies. A Warm Up loan is interest-free for five years. If you’re unable to meet your repayments, a default interest rate of 5% will apply to your outstanding loan balance.

A minimum equity of 20% for owner-occupied properties and 40% for investment properties applies.

Best Mortgage Rates for Refinancing

If you are interested in securing the best home loan to suit your finances, the table below displays some of the 2-year fixed-rate home loans on our database (some may have links to lenders’ websites) that are available for home owners looking to refinance. This table is sorted by Star Rating (highest to lowest), followed by company name (alphabetical). Products shown are principal and interest home loans available for a loan amount of $500K in Auckland. Before committing to a particular home loan product, check upfront with your lender and read the applicable loan documentation to confirm whether the terms of the loan meet your needs and repayment capacity. Use Canstar’s home loan selector to view a wider range of home loan products. Canstar may earn a fee for referrals.

Compare Cheapest Home Loan Rates

About the author of this page

This report was written by Canstar’s Editor, Bruce Pitchers. Bruce began his career writing about pop culture, and spent a decade in sports journalism. More recently, he’s applied his editing and writing skills to the world of finance and property. Prior to Canstar, he worked as a freelancer, including for The Australian Financial Review, the NZ Financial Markets Authority, and for real estate companies on both sides of the Tasman.