Home renovation loans in Toronto: HELP, mortgage options and what else exists

The City option: Toronto's HELP

The Home Energy Loan Program is the City of Toronto's own financing for energy retrofits such as insulation, windows, heat pumps, solar and geothermal, and it's open now (toronto.ca ↗, checked October 8, 2026). You can borrow up to $125,000, as long as the loan's value, including interest and the administrative charge, stays within 10% of your property's current value assessment. Rates are fixed for the term: the table valid until September 30, 2026 ran from 3.34% (5-year) to 4.75% (20-year), and it was still the posted table when we checked on October 8, so confirm current rates with the City.

The 20-year term is only for projects that include solar, geothermal, windows or heat pumps, and a 2% administrative charge applies. You repay through your property tax bill in 11 instalments a year and can pay the loan off at any time. The City's payment chart shows $455 per instalment for $50,000 over 10 years; that is the principal alone ($50,000 over 110 instalments), so interest and the 2% charge come on top. Most projects need an EnerGuide home energy assessment with a registered advisor first; heat-pump-only and solar-only projects don't.

The one that's gone: the Canada Greener Homes Loan

The federal Canada Greener Homes Loan (up to $40,000, interest-free) is closed: October 1, 2025 was the last day to apply, and its funding is fully committed (NRCan ↗). We know of no replacement federal retrofit loan as of October 2026. If a contractor or website is still promising it, their information is at least a year old, a useful trust test we apply across our program tracker.

Mortgage-based options: refinancing, home equity and the CMHC refund

Your bank or broker can also lend against the equity in your home. The Financial Consumer Agency of Canada lists the main routes: a second mortgage, a home equity line of credit (HELOC), a home equity loan paid out as one lump sum, and re-borrowing amounts you prepaid on your mortgage. It says you may usually borrow up to 80% of your home's value, or up to 65% with a HELOC, and that your lender may have to change the terms of your original mortgage (FCAC ↗).

Refinancing before your term ends means breaking your mortgage contract. On a closed mortgage that normally means a prepayment penalty, which FCAC warns can cost thousands of dollars, and possibly administration, appraisal, reinvestment and discharge fees; you may also have to repay any cash back you received. Some lenders offer a blend-and-extend instead: no prepayment penalty, though you may pay administrative fees, and your old rate is blended with the new term's rate (FCAC ↗). Get the full cost in writing and compare it with HELP's rates and 2% charge. We're a directory, not a lender, and nothing on this page is financial advice.

If you bought with a CMHC-insured mortgage, the renovation can also earn money back. Complete at least $20,000 of eligible energy-efficient work after purchase and CMHC refunds 25% of your mortgage insurance premium. Apply within two years of your mortgage closing, with your paid invoices and a void cheque; the refund comes by direct deposit (CMHC ↗, checked October 8, 2026). Only CMHC-insured mortgages qualify: Sagen's and Canada Guaranty's energy-efficiency refunds cover newly built homes, not renovations.

The sequence that gets the most back

Toronto's stack rewards a specific order: book the EnerGuide assessment first. It's the document HELP requires and the key to Home Renovation Savings' bundled rebates (insulation up to $7,700, $100 per window opening, the $600 assessment rebate), as long as you book it through one of that program's seven approved service organizations and have the follow-up booked by November 30 and done by December 31, 2026. Finance through HELP, collect the rebates against the same work, then claim CMHC Eco if you're an insured recent buyer. The planner builds your version of this sequence, and the Toronto directory lists every registered advisor who can start it.