Home Building Finance Ireland offer developers a discounted green development loan using Home Performance Index Certification for sustainable housing developments

Home Building Finance Ireland (HBFI) has launched a new green loan product offering a discount of up to 0.5% on loans to homebuilders for developments certified with Irish Green Building Council’s Home Performance Index certification.  The HBFI Green Funding Product is the first Irish green financial product fully aligned to the Paris Agreement and EU taxonomy regulations. To qualify for the discounted product all residential projects must be certified to the Home Performance Index standard. HBFI operates as a private company wholly owned by the Minister for Finance, its role is to provide funding at market rates for commercially viable residential developments, as part of a wider response to Ireland’s housing supply shortage.

For development to be truly sustainable, it must balance the welfare of the planet with the welfare of people. Home Performance Index was developed by Irish Green Building Council for this purpose. It is the first comprehensive sustainability certification for new Irish homes with 3,250 homes already registered for certification. The certification goes well beyond the EPC rating (BER in Ireland) to address environmental impacts of new homes such as the production of building materials, impact on ecology, pollution, water consumption and flood risk. However, it also encourages developers and designers to improve the health of occupants by improving daylighting, acoustics, and minimising harmful chemicals such as radon and VOCs.  By living in a home with Home Performance Index certification, residents can be rest assured that it is designed and built in a way that integrates the environment and the occupiers health into the economic system.

IGBC promoted the Home Performance Index certification for green homes and green finance as part of the SMARTER Finance for Families initiative, funded by EU Horizon 2020 program grant no. No.847141.

For further information

Home Building Finance Ireland Green Funding visit https://www.hbfi.ie/products/green-funding

Home Performance Index, visit http://homeperformanceindex.ie/ or email hpi@igbc.ie

Watch 12 points to consider in a green home and look at our poster which gives you a good idea of the benefits of a green home that is more than just energy efficient.