Index – Economy – A huge rush is coming for the home renovation subsidy, an extremely important regulation has been omitted

There may be an even bigger rush than expected for subsidies for the home renovation program starting this summer. As the Index previously reported: the program launched by the government, with a budget of HUF 108 billion, supports residential building energy modernization with interest-free loans and non-refundable subsidies.

The goal is clearly the energetic modernization of the properties, the amount won can be used for heating and insulation investments in houses built before 1990. Until now, however, there was a condition that you could only bid on properties that had piped gas connected to them.

In its statement on Wednesday, Bankmonitor drew attention to the fact that this condition is no longer included in the tender, which could double the number of properties eligible for home renovation.

“However, this also means that those who would take advantage of the opportunity have to hurry, because the available HUF 108 billion fund could be exhausted even faster,” the statement says, since the fund is only enough to renovate 20,000 properties, and according to estimates, around 2.2 million family homes may be affected. Half of them are gas-heated.

What is known so far about the home renovation grant?

• The amount of the subsidy may not exceed HUF 6 million. It consists of two parts: a non-repayable grant and an interest-free loan. In practice, the non-refundable subsidy will reduce the amount of the loan.
• The term of the subsidized loan can be up to 8 years.
• The amount of the non-refundable subsidy can be between 2.5 and 3.5 million forints. The exact amount depends on the claimant’s income and the average earnings measured in the given district. Based on the information so far, the maximum amount may differ from district to district: larger support is available in poorer regions. Based on the new news, however, the income of individuals may also matter, but we still have to wait for the exact details.
• The amount can only be used for energy modernization of family houses built before 1990.
• The building’s energy consumption must be reduced by at least 30 percent thanks to the works. (This must be supported by an energy certificate.)
• The range of subsidized works: replacement of windows and doors, insulation, modernization of the hot water system, modernization of the heating system.