Efficiency Maine Green Bank

5% off with Green Bank financing or cash

Efficiency Maine Green Bank

5% off with Green Bank financing or cash

Evergreen customers were among the first to use Efficiency Maine insulation rebates in 2010 and Efficiency Maine financing in 2011. We’ll help you maximize your rebates, then find the payment plan that fits. Save 5% when you finance with the Green Bank or pay cash.

Three steps to your plan and your Green Bank financing

Call 207-517-2858 or send us a message. We’ll help you figure out what you qualify for and get you scheduled.

Step 2: Free consultation

We’ll visit your home, recommend the right work, and maximize your rebates. Then you’ll see what’s left to invest.

Many customers pay cash. If a loan fits, we’ll help you choose one and do the paperwork. Save 5% either way.

Efficiency Maine Green Bank home energy loans

Through the Efficiency Maine Green Bank, homeowners can borrow up to $25,000 with a few straightforward options. Calculate your monthly payment on the Efficiency Maine site.

Financing is the last step, not the first. Start with the right improvements and every Efficiency Maine rebate you qualify for. Then look at what’s left to invest and decide whether a loan makes sense. Plenty of our customers pay cash instead. We take 5% off when you finance with the Green Bank or pay cash.

Which loan fits your project?

Loan optionTermAPRMax. loan amountBest for
1-Year, 0% APR1 year0%$25,000Larger projects (roughly $9,000 and up) you’re confident you can pay off within a year. $500 origination fee applies.
5-Year, 5.99% APR5 years5.99%$25,000Smaller amounts, or larger ones where 5.99% over five years is attractive. No origination fee and no prepayment penalty.
10-Year, 7.99% APR10 years7.99%$25,000Larger projects where the lowest monthly payment matters most.
Income-Based, 10-Year10 years5.99%$7,500Qualifying low- or moderate-income households, see next table

The $9,000 mark is a rule of thumb, not a hard cutoff. Below it, the 5.99% loan often costs less, since the 0% loan carries a $500 origination fee. Above it, 0% gets more attractive if you’re confident you can pay it off within 12 months.

No collateral required. No application fee and no prepayment penalty. Up to 25% of the loan can cover non-insulation costs tied to the project, things like moisture mitigation, hazardous material removal, or roof repair ahead of attic insulation.

What this could look like for your project

These are illustrative examples of how the rebate and loan options above work together. Your numbers will depend on your home and your project.

ScenarioProject costEfficiency Maine rebateRemaining investmentAmount financedLoan optionMonthly payment
1$6,000$2,150 (any income)$3,850$3,8505-Year, 5.99% APR (no origination fee)$74
2$12,150$2,150 (any income)$10,000$10,0001-Year, 0% APR ($500 origination fee included in payment)$875
3$10,000$3,225 (moderate income)$6,775$6,775Income-Based 10-Year, 5.99% APR (income-qualified)$75

Rebates shown are for an attic project with attic air sealing. In scenario 2, the $500 origination fee is built into the monthly payment. Payments don’t include the 5% discount. Rebate amounts and loan terms can change.

 Do you qualify?

What you’ll needStandard loans (1-, 5-, 10-Year)Income-Based 10-Year
Minimum credit score620580
Maximum debt-to-income ratio55%70%
Homeowner requirementOwn the property, principal residence in MaineSame, plus income eligibility below
Income eligibilityNot requiredYou or a household member must be verified as low- or moderate-income by Efficiency Maine within the past year
Installer requirementEfficiency Maine Registered Vendor (Evergreen qualifies)Same

Qualifying for the income-based rate: You qualify if you or someone in your household receives HEAP, SNAP, TANF, or MaineCare, or if your household’s adjusted gross income is at or below $70,000 (single or head of household) or $100,000 (married filing jointly). Submit your documents online, and approval is good for a year. 

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 Green Bank financing: Common questions

Getting started

A home improvement loan lets you cover a project’s cost now and pay it back over time instead of all at once. With the Efficiency Maine Green Bank, you apply, get approved, complete your project with a registered vendor like Evergreen, and the loan funds go straight to us once the work’s done. From there, you make fixed monthly payments until it’s paid off.

Maine’s state-backed financing program for home energy upgrades, run through the Efficiency Maine Green Bank. It offers low-interest and 0% loans for insulation, heat pumps, and related projects, on top of Efficiency Maine’s rebates.

A rebate lowers your project cost up front. A loan covers what’s left after the rebate, so you can spread that balance out over time instead of paying it all at once.

Yes. Efficiency Maine only disburses Green Bank funds to a Residential Registered Vendor, and Evergreen is one.

Rates, terms, and loan options

Four: 1-year at 0% APR, 5-year at 5.99% APR, and 10-year at 7.99% APR, all up to $25,000, plus a 10-year income-based option at 5.99% APR up to $7,500. Full details are on Efficiency Maine’s home energy loans page.

No application fee on any option. The only fee is a $500 origination fee on the 1-year 0% loan, spread across your 12 payments.

Yes, with no prepayment penalty on any of the four options.

Evergreen also offers NEIF EnergyPlus financing, $2,500 to $35,000, fixed rate, 3, 5, or 10-year terms, no lien on your home required. We’ll help you figure out which program fits once we know your project cost.

Qualifying for a loan

620 minimum for the standard loans, with a debt-to-income ratio up to 55%. The income-based loan is more flexible, a 580 minimum score and up to 70% debt-to-income.

No. These are unsecured loans based on your creditworthiness, not your home equity. Efficiency Maine only takes a security interest in any rebate payable to you.

You qualify automatically if you or someone in your household receives HEAP, SNAP, TANF, or MaineCare. Otherwise, your household’s adjusted gross income needs to be at or below $70,000 (single or head of household) or $100,000 (married filing jointly). Submit your documents online, and Efficiency Maine verifies eligibility in about 5 business days. It’s good for a year.

No. Rebates and loans are evaluated separately. Applying for one doesn’t change what you qualify for on the other.

Combining rebates and financing

Yes, and plenty of homeowners do. You finance only the balance left over after your Efficiency Maine rebate is applied, not the full project cost. Many customers pay that remaining balance in cash instead, and the 5% discount applies either way.

Say your attic project costs $6,000 and you qualify for a $2,150 rebate ($2,000 for the attic plus $150 for attic air sealing, at any income). That leaves $3,850 to invest. Financed on the 5-year, 5.99% APR loan, that’s about $74 a month. Prefer to pay cash? The 5% discount applies there too.

Applying and getting funded

The Green Bank application can be completed in as little as 10 minutes online. We’ll walk you through it during your free consultation.

No, and that’s by design. Efficiency Maine disburses your financed amount directly to Evergreen once your project is complete, so there’s nothing for you to manage in between.

That depends on your specific situation. We’re not tax advisors, so talk to a tax professional about your project before assuming anything either way.

No. Efficiency Maine financing only applies to projects that haven’t started yet, it can’t be issued retroactively for work that’s already done.

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