Government to Offer Bigger Loans for Energy-Efficient Homes
A technician performs a blower door test as part of a home energy audit, which is a necessary step in the process of securing energy-efficiency incentives in a mortgage package. (image: jayvirdy via flickr.com)
Home buyers keen on energy conservation will soon get a little extra help from the federal government, the New York Times reported on Wednesday.
The government-backed mortgage firm Fannie Mae announced that, beginning this summer, it would include incentives for homebuyers who use part of their loans to make energy-efficiency upgrades. Currently, home loan perks for improving energy efficiency are only available through loans insured by the Federal Housing Administration. Under the program, borrowers of FHA-insured mortgages can qualify for larger loans if they earmark part of the loan for energy-efficiency expenditures that yield long-term energy savings. The energy-efficient loans require an energy audit and appraisal by an official with expertise in energy-efficient properties. For many homeowners, taking the additional steps required to secure an FHA-insured, energy-efficient “green” loan wins them an extra 5 percent over the amount of a traditional loan they would have received otherwise.
Maine’s Congressional Delegation Protests Changes in LIHEAP Funding
Sens. Snowe and Collins of Maine say LIHEAP distribution penalizes cold weather states. (image: AP via wafb.com)
Sen. Olympia Snowe (R-ME) released a statement Wednesday that criticized the Obama administration for proposing a $1.8 billion cut in funds for the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) and for slashing Maine’s allotment of this year’s LIHEAP money by nearly 80 percent. Other members of Maine’s congressional delegation, including Sen. Susan Collins (R), Rep. Chellie Pingree (D), and Rep. Mike Michaud (D), have joined Snowe in characterizing the distribution of LIHEAP funds as unfairly skewed toward Southern states and away from cold weather states like Maine.
This year Maine received $4.7 million in LIHEAP funding, a far cry from last year’s $29.7 million. According to a press release issued by Snowe’s office, the method of distributing LIHEAP funds has been changed to favor states whose temperatures are colder than usual, rather than states with the absolute lowest temperatures. Florida, Alabama, and Texas are among the states that have benefited from this, but Snowe says their gains have been at the expense of states where harsh winters are typical. Rep. Pingree also criticized the LIHEAP formula for weighing changes in unemployment rather than absolute unemployment. Maine “already had a high unemployment rate,” said Pingree, but the state was slighted because its unemployment rate had not climbed substantially.
Snowe called for a reexamination of the methodology used to apportion funding, and said the cuts seen in cold weather states show “a lack of understanding of the LIHEAP program.” New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island have also received less LIHEAP money this year.
Contingents in both the Senate and the House, including members of Congress from Maine, have written letters to the president asking for additional emergency funds and for a reconsideration of the method used to determine distribution of LIHEAP funds.
Afternoon Price Check, February 8: Cold Weather Lifts Oil Prices
After a weekend storm dumped up to 40 inches of snow in some places in the mid-Atlantic region, forecasts predict below-average temperatures all along the East Coast for six to ten days. Cold weather will increase demand for heating oil, and oil prices on NYMEX have already begun to climb. A weak dollar and threats [...]
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KEY: Cumulative Heating Degree Days since December 1, 2009 for specified location / departure from average cumulative HDDs for today’s date.
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Read More »OPEC President Foresees Stable Prices Despite Recent Volatility
Last week crude oil prices fluctuated widely, falling to a seven-week low after a pronounced upswing in prices at the beginning of the week. Nevertheless, OPEC president Germanico Pinto said the group expects “reasonable price stability” and predicted that the price of crude oil would stay between $70 and $80 a barrel.
Such stability would be [...]
