Better Homes Kingston Program Relaunch

Better Homes Kingston

Calling all homeowners who are interested in making their home more energy efficient and climate friendly! The City of Kingston intends to relaunch the Better Homes Kingston program in 2026 and we're looking for your feedback.

Take the short survey below and sign up for the program waitlist to be notified when the next round of funding goes live.

Background

Better Homes Kingston is a local improvement charge (LIC) financing program that encourages homeowners to undertake deep-energy retrofits. The pilot program was offered with assistance from the Federation of Canadian Municipalities Green Municipal Fund (FCM), participating homeowners can qualify for up to $40,000 in loans and incentives to complete retrofits that reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Participants used the funds to install source air heat pumps, solar panels, improved insulation and more.

Established in 2022, this municipal program faced high demand, completing:

  • 368 projects with 66% average greenhouse gas emissions reductions per project, making it one of the most successful energy retrofit programs in Canada
  • over 10 Million dollars spent on completed projects
  • more than 1400 total annual tonnes of GHG emissions savings (27,000 tonnes over lifetime of projects)

The next round of Better Homes Kingston is expected to relaunch for 2026 to help a new pool of Kingstonians upgrade their homes to save energy!

Get Involved

Your input will help us ensure the program offerings best serve participants.

  • Take the survey below before August 14.
  • Email GetInvolvedKingston@CityofKingston.ca or call 613-546-0000 for an alternate format of the survey.
  • When submitting your feedback, you will also have the option to express interest in participating in a focus group, which will take place in September.

Are you a contractor or service provider completing home energy upgrades? Complete the Better Homes Kingston contractor survey here.

Better Homes Kingston

Calling all homeowners who are interested in making their home more energy efficient and climate friendly! The City of Kingston intends to relaunch the Better Homes Kingston program in 2026 and we're looking for your feedback.

Take the short survey below and sign up for the program waitlist to be notified when the next round of funding goes live.

Background

Better Homes Kingston is a local improvement charge (LIC) financing program that encourages homeowners to undertake deep-energy retrofits. The pilot program was offered with assistance from the Federation of Canadian Municipalities Green Municipal Fund (FCM), participating homeowners can qualify for up to $40,000 in loans and incentives to complete retrofits that reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Participants used the funds to install source air heat pumps, solar panels, improved insulation and more.

Established in 2022, this municipal program faced high demand, completing:

  • 368 projects with 66% average greenhouse gas emissions reductions per project, making it one of the most successful energy retrofit programs in Canada
  • over 10 Million dollars spent on completed projects
  • more than 1400 total annual tonnes of GHG emissions savings (27,000 tonnes over lifetime of projects)

The next round of Better Homes Kingston is expected to relaunch for 2026 to help a new pool of Kingstonians upgrade their homes to save energy!

Get Involved

Your input will help us ensure the program offerings best serve participants.

  • Take the survey below before August 14.
  • Email GetInvolvedKingston@CityofKingston.ca or call 613-546-0000 for an alternate format of the survey.
  • When submitting your feedback, you will also have the option to express interest in participating in a focus group, which will take place in September.

Are you a contractor or service provider completing home energy upgrades? Complete the Better Homes Kingston contractor survey here.

  • What we heard

    Why we engaged

    Established in 2022, the Better Homes Kingston program helps homeowners make energy-efficient and home resilience upgrades, offering loans and incentives to meet our community climate goals. The City of Kingston plans to relaunch the Better Homes Kingston program in 2026. The goal of this engagement was to better understand what worked well from the pilot phase of the program, program considerations for prospective participants and interest in proposed features and funding models for the next phase of the program.

    How we engaged

    Two surveys were open from July 22 until August 14. Homeowners were asked about their awareness of the program, house characteristics, knowledge of and interest in upgrades, opinions on funding models and general demographics. Contractors were asked about their knowledge of the program, how it affected their business, engagement throughout the process, interest in training opportunities and company demographics.

    The surveys were shared with the community via:

    • Social media promotion across the City of Kingston’s Facebook, Instagram, X and LinkedIn channels

    • Digital screens on City and library networks

    • Inclusion in Climate Action, Get Involved Kingston and Sustainable Kingston newsletters

    • Links on City of Kingston website

    • Paid social media ads on Facebook, Instagram and Reddit

    • Direct contact with stakeholders including residents on the Better Homes Kingston waitlist, past participants, members of the Climate Leadership Working Group and local contractors.

    Survey respondents were also asked for interest in participating in further engagement. Three focus groups (for past participants, prospective participants and contractors) took place the week of September 15. All participants were provided an honorarium by Sustainable Kingston.

    Who we heard from

    • 296 participants completed the Better Homes Kingston surveys (275 homeowners, 21 contractors)

    • 31 participants in focus groups

    • 1,819 participants visited the project page to learn more about the Better Homes Kingston engagement and planned relaunch

    • 24 participants engaged with the City for the first time on Get Involved Kingston

    Household Types

    • Half of all homeowners self-identified as couples living alone or with relatives, 25% families and 16% persons living alone.

    • 85% of respondents live in detached homes and 68% heat their homes using natural gas furnaces.

    • 72% have lived in their homes more than 5 years (51% more than 10 years).

    • 1966 was the average year that respondents' homes were built.

    Homeowner Demographics

    Demographic questions were optional, and the following results do not comprise the total of all respondents.

    • Age: 37% are over 65, 23% aged 55-64. Only 6% are aged under 35.

    • Household income: 43.5% make less than $100,000 per year, 41% indicated between $100,000 and $199,999 and 14.6% make more than $200,000 annually.

    • Locations of respondents: 39% Southwest Kingston (K7M), 31% Central-East Kingston (K7K), 16% Central-South Kingston (K7L), 10% Northwest Kingston (K7P), 4% Other (Westbrook, Joyceville, Seeley’s Bay, Gananoque)

    Contactor Demographics

    Contractors indicated a wide variety of designations, including: HVAC, building envelope, renewable energy, electrical, plumbing, carpentry, architectural design, roofing, masonry, mechanical and general renovations. Companies are mixed in size, with 50% having 2-10 staff members.

    What we heard

    Homeowners: Awareness of Program and Retrofits

    A majority of all respondents (61%) had heard of Better Homes Kingston prior to completing the survey. Most often, they learned about it from the City website (39%) or from word of mouth (30%). Of prospective participants, about half (53%) had heard of Better Homes Kingston and 33% were familiar with “home resilience retrofits” (22% “somewhat familiar”).

    Resilience and Climate Adaptation

    More than half of all homeowners (61%) indicated they had experienced negative weather impacts in the last 5 years including poor indoor air quality (23%), unbearable indoor heat in the summer (20%), basement flooding and property damage due to storms (17%, respectively). 48% stated they would be interested in resilience upgrades (air-conditioning, sump-pumps and basement waterproofing, etc.) and 36% said “maybe” if they learned more about these upgrades.

    Experiences of Past Participants

    Past participants listed a number of upgrades that they had undertaken in the last 5 years including HVAC (77%), adding insulation (68%), replacing windows or doors (42%) and upgrading water heaters (42%). Respondents felt that participation in the program would be made easier with pre-approved contractors (62%) and step-by-step guide (60%), upfront cash (56%) and a single point of contact (47%). When ranking program features, cash rebate and home energy audit rebates were most preferred.


    During the focus group discussion, past participants of Better Homes Kingston expressed:

    • The 0% interest loan was the primary motivator for participation.

    • The Energy Coach was widely praised for simplifying the process and bridging knowledge gaps.

    • Mixed experiences with contractors highlighted the need for better vetting and training.

    • Interest in additional retrofits (e.g., solar arrays, energy storage) and desired higher funding caps.

    • Suggestions included integrating the program into real estate practices and improving contractor accountability.

    Prospective Participants

    Interest and Barriers

    74% of homeowners who had not participated in Better Homes Kingston were interested in participating in the future, with only 4% indicating ‘not interested’. These respondents are most interested in adding insulation (45%), replacing windows or doors (29%), replacing water heaters, installing solar panels and EV chargers (24%, respectively). Of this segment, 72% said the biggest barrier to completing retrofits was the cost. 31% said they weren’t sure where to start and 30% were held back by the perceived complexity of upgrading.

    Funding and Support

    Half of prospective participants (52%) indicated that cost of borrowing is “very important” in decisions to make home upgrades, and an additional 13% agreed it was “somewhat important.” Respondents would consider using a loan if it was interest-free (54%) or low-interest (29%). The program features that appealed to them were grant or rebate (77%), a combination of grant and loan (59%) and personalized expert support throughout the process (42%). When asked how they planned to finance future home upgrades, 68% stated “personal savings” and 50% selected “Municipal Property Assessed Loans.” 56% indicated that they would qualify for the Canada Greener Homes Loan.

    Prospective Participants Focus Group

    During the focus group with prospective participants, the following points were emphasized:

    • Popular upgrade interests included windows, doors, solar panels, heat pumps, and roofing.

    • Barriers included difficulty finding reliable contractors, high upfront costs, and confusion between federal and municipal programs.

    • Participants valued energy coaching and supported a small administrative fee if bundled into financing.

    • Strong interest in climate resilience upgrades and support for a contractor direct pay model.

    Contractor Participation

    Awareness and Understanding

    40% had “good” or “great” understanding of the loans and incentives offered and process to participate in the program, suggesting the need for additional education for prospective contractors.

    Results and Challenges

    Of those who participated in Better Homes Kingston, 65% said it increased their sales and 50% said it increased interest in their business. 42% felt that they were informed and contacted to their liking, but 57% stated they were kept informed to a ‘minimal level’ or ‘didn’t hear from program staff enough,’ indicating an opportunity for increased communication between staff and participants.

    Challenges identified included timelines for payments and work (36%), process for participation (36%), quoting requirements (14%), and unclear information and uncertainty over asking questions (21%). Others stated they would strongly support pre-approved contractors and would like more support and communication throughout the program.

    Contractor Focus Group

    Focus group members agreed that quoting was time-consuming and overly complicated, that they had concerns for payment delays and agreed with increased support for contractors. Participants agreed that having a list of qualified contractors who have completed interactive training would be beneficial.

    Next Steps

    A full report including the results from the surveys and focus groups was shared with the internal project team. Feedback will be considered in a report on program recommendations which will be presented to Council in Q4 2025.

  • Quick Summary

    Who we heard from

    While we dive in to the results of the Better Homes Kingston survey, we are excited to share that we heard from 296 participants. Between July 22 and August 15, we saw:

    • 275 participants in community survey
    • 21 participants in contractor survey
    • 24 new registrations on Get Involved Kingston
    • 1,819 users viewed the project page

    Next steps

    Focus groups will be taking place throughout September 2025. Staff will engage with past program participants, prospective participants and service providers to dive deeper into program considerations, barriers to participation, processes and more.

    Results from this engagement will be published on this page in October 2025.

Page last updated: 21 Oct 2025, 01:31 PM