Special financing is available for residential and commercial energy efficiency improvements through a grant made to Avista by the Washington State Department of Commerce, funded by ARRA.
(Natural Gas customers may be eligible for additional loan opportunities.)
You may be eligible if you are:
Avista residential or commercial customers receiving gas and/or electric service in the state of Washington.
What the loan covers:
Eligible upgrade items include energy efficiency measures mentioned in your energy audit report or any measure that qualifies for one of Avista’s incentive programs. This doesn’t include renewable energy measures.
Residential
If you are a residential customer, please follow these steps:
While it is not required that you have an in-home energy audit to qualify for this loan program, the benefit you receive from the audit will help inform you of the measures you can perform to achieve your energy savings.
- To sign up for an Avista In-Home Energy Audit, go to Avista - In-Home Energy Audit Pilot Program.
- Decide which of the audit report’s recommendations you’ll implement.
- Visit Avista - Washington to see if the measure you are interested in upgrading qualifies for a current Avista incentive program.
- Or identify if the measure is on the Avista approved list
- Identify the cost of the approved project by getting bids from qualified contractors
- Contact Sustainable Resources INW for help in applying for a loan (509-209-2861 or susanne@sustainableresourcesinw.org).
Loan details for residential projects
- An in-home energy audit ranges in cost from $49 to $325, depending on where you live in Spokane County.
- The participating lender is Numerica Credit Union.
- The interest rate is five percent lower than a standard unsecured loan and varies depending on your own credit rating and history.
- Typical loans range from $2,000 to $10,000. No one customer can request a total of more than $20,000 in loans.
Commercial
If you are a commercial customer, please follow these steps:
- Visit Washington Commercial Energy Efficiency Programs to see if the measure you are interested in upgrading qualifies for the current Avista incentive program.
- If it isn’t one of Avista’s standard programs, you will need to contact your Account Executive for an energy review.
- Your Account Executive will schedule a free energy review with an Avista DSM engineer who will analyze and approve measures for an Avista incentive. These approved measures will qualify for the loan program.
- Identify the cost of the approved project by getting your bids (multiple bids suggested.)
- Contact Sustainable Resources INW for help in applying for a loan (509-209-2861 or susanne@sustainableresourcesinw.org).
Loan details for commercial projects:
- A commercial energy review will take about 1 hour to complete.
- The participating lenders are Spokane Teachers Credit Union and SNAP Financial Access.
- The interest rate can be as much as two percent lower depending on the lender and your own credit rating and history.
- Typical loans range from $5,000 to $15,000. No one customer can request a total of more than $100,000 in loans.
- Available to:
- Small business owners, even if you don’t own your space – for equipment not permanently attached to the building.
- Commercial property owners: For improvements to the property itself. Includes multi-family housing (5 or more units).
Sustainable Resources INW is the loan coordinator and acts as a liaison between the customer and the lenders.
The funding for this program came from The Washington State Department of Commerce through a $1MM credit enhancement grant to Avista through the federal Stimulus Act (ARRA). The grant makes it possible for participating lenders to offer this special financing to a broader range of borrowers at a lower cost.
Idaho Business Customers
Businesses in Idaho may be able to receive financial assistance on projects that result in the conservation of energy and/or utilization of renewable resources. The Idaho Office of Energy Resources has these loans available. Learn More.