The short answer: BC homeowners can get rebates for heat pumps, insulation, windows and doors, and heat pump water heaters. The standard program, run by BC Hydro and the CleanBC Better Homes program, is aimed mainly at electrically heated homes: up to $4,000 for a heat pump, up to $5,500 for insulation and up to $2,000 for windows and doors. The income-qualified Energy Savings Program goes further, with up to $13,000 for a heat pump whatever fuel the home uses now.
Rebates change often and most must be arranged before the work starts. Treat the figures below as a starting point, and confirm your own eligibility with Better Homes BC before you sign anything.
Rebates for electrically heated homes
If your home is heated mainly with electric baseboards or an electric furnace, BC Hydro lists these home renovation rebates:
| Upgrade | Rebate (up to) |
|---|---|
| Heat pump | $4,000 |
| Insulation | $5,500 |
| Windows and doors | $2,000 |
| Heat pump water heater | $1,000 |
Combined, BC Hydro puts the total at up to $12,500. The program isn’t open to condo or apartment units, which have a separate condo and apartment program.
Income-qualified: the Energy Savings Program
The CleanBC Better Homes Energy Savings Program is for lower- and middle-income households and covers more of the cost:
- Heat pump: up to $13,000 for a house or other ground-oriented home switching from oil, natural gas, propane, electricity or wood.
- Heat pump water heater: up to $3,500.
- Units in multi-unit buildings: up to $5,000 for a heat pump.
There are three levels based on household income and size. For a one-person household the published ceilings run from $51,100 at the first level to $102,100 at the third, so many working households qualify at level 3.
What about gas-heated homes in Burnaby?
Many older Burnaby houses are heated with natural gas. In the standard program, the larger gas-to-heat-pump rebates are currently listed for northern BC, not the Lower Mainland. For a gas-heated home here, the main routes are the income-qualified Energy Savings Program and any utility or municipal offers available when you apply. The Better Homes BC rebate search, or its energy coaches on 1-844-881-9790, will tell you exactly what applies to your address.
How to make sure you actually get the money
- Check eligibility first. Use the rebate search at betterhomesbc.ca before booking any work.
- Pre-approval or a registered contractor may be required. Heat pump rebates usually need a program-registered installer, and some rebates need an energy assessment before and after.
- Keep every invoice and product model number. Applications are refused over missing paperwork more than anything else.
- Stack carefully. Some provincial, utility and municipal rebates can be combined; others cannot. The program rules decide, not the installer’s sales page.
Where rebates fit into a renovation
The best time to add insulation or replace windows is when walls are already open for a renovation. Doing it then costs less than a separate project later. If you are planning a whole-home renovation or a basement renovation, ask your contractor to plan the energy upgrades into the same job so the rebate paperwork, the insulation and the finishes all line up.
Planning a renovation with energy upgrades?
Naimi Contracting renovates homes in Burnaby and across Metro Vancouver. Ask for a free, written estimate, and tell us if you’re applying for a rebate so the work can be planned around the program’s requirements.
Sources: BC Hydro home renovation rebates; CleanBC Better Homes and Energy Savings Program pages (betterhomesbc.ca). Rebate amounts and rules change; confirm current details with the program before starting work.