How we can help you pay for home improvements this year

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Waite Park neighborhood residents planning home improvements this summer may qualify for financing through a new zero-interest loan program.

The Waite Park Community Council approved the program last year as a way to encourage investment in the neighborhood and its housing stock.

A second program, also approved by the neighborhood board last year, offers forgivable, no-interest loans to cover the cost of emergency repairs.

“We can’t wait for folks to start taking advantage of these great programs to help maintain safe, sustainable, and high-quality housing in our neighborhood,” said Hayley Nemmers, chair of the community council’s housing committee.  

Home Improvement Loans

The home improvement program offers loans of up to $15,000 for most permanent exterior and interior improvements, including:

  • Interior remodeling

  • Windows/doors

  • Solar panels

  • Insulation

  • HVAC, water heaters, geothermal

  • Roofing

  • Painting/siding

  • Correction of code violations

  • Accessibility improvements

  • Decks, porches, retaining walls

  • Garage repairs or construction

  • Driveways, sidewalks, steps

  • Health measures including asbestos, lead abatement, radon, carbon monoxide, and/or mold removal

Fences, trees, shrubs and other non-permanent landscaping improvements are not eligible unless part of a larger project or needed to address a potential structural threat.

The program is limited to owner-occupied properties of 1-4 units within the Waite Park neighborhood. Income limit is 80% of Area Median Income.

More details and an online application for the home improvement loans are available here or by calling the Center for Energy and Environment at 612-335-5884.

Emergency Deferred Program

The emergency deferred program offers no-interest loans up to $5,000 for repairs to address conditions that make a home dangerous or uninhabitable. Examples include sewage back ups, furnace failures in extreme cold months, or major holes in a roof or window cavity.

The emergency loans will be 100% forgiven if the owner continues to own and occupy the property for 5 years from the loan closing date. There is no maximum income limit for the emergency deferred program.

More details and an online application for the emergency deferred loans are available here or by calling the Center for Energy and Environment at 612-335-5884.