Well, for those that watch the evening news, you probably just found out that we don’t exactly qualify for the ecoENERGY rebates that we once thought we did.

I’d been contacted by CityTV a number of weeks ago about wanting to come and record the demolition of the house. After it went down, I was interviewed about the project and what we were planning. Of course I spoke about the website and our green plans, but I also mentioned that we qualified for about $9,500 in government rebates. Well, that doesn’t exactly turn out to be true.

As I mentioned earlier, I was originally skeptical if we’d actually qualify for these rebates. Their documentation definitely makes it seem as if we qualified, I mean it clearly says:

If you live in Ontario and own a single family home you are eligible for the Home Energy Retrofit Program.

I suppose that should read:

If you live in Ontario and own a single family home you are eligible for the Home Energy Retrofit Program UNLESS YOU TEAR IT DOWN COMPLETELY.

Before having the energy audit, I had contacted 2 independent sources about the project and had made it quite clear what our intentions were. Both confirmed that we would indeed qualify for the rebates, but only for what we were replacing. For instance, any additional windows or toilets or square footage would NOT be covered. However, they stated that we’d still see a rebate when we replaced our old boiler with a new furnace, etc.

Apparently you don’t qualify for anything if you completely tear down the home.

Now, it’s still a little unclear where the line between “renovation” and “new home” blurs. For instance, we could have maintained our old foundation and a few walls, and it would have been considered a “renovation”. However, EVERYTHING would be new. New insulation, new furnace, new windows, etc. I obviously have to question the logic in this, as we’ve actually taken the extra step (or like ten) and our building envelope will be far superior.

I also have to wonder if I should attempt to contest this, or if I should just let it go?

Regardless, we’re still moving ahead as planned. I hadn’t included the rebates in our budget, as I didn’t exactly want to count my chickens before they hatched. But it’s definitely a little painful to have $9500 dangled in front of you, only to have it taken away.

I dug a little deeper, and it looks like we do indeed qualify for the energy rebates I mentioned a few days ago. Because the property has a preexisting address, utility connections, etc., any work done to the house (regardless of the scale) is considered a “renovation”. So ring the bell, it looks like our project just got a little cheaper.

Next step is to schedule an audit and get the ball rolling.