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Many Canadians are unaware of programs that are meant to help them handle living expenses as the winter months loom and the cost of living rises. <\/p>\n
Several provinces and the federal government offer grants meant to offset the cost of making a sustainable upgrade to a home, which generally cuts down on energy costs. <\/p>\n
For example, the federal government earlier this month announced a $2-billion rebate program for Canadians making the switch to electric heat pumps, offering as much as $10,000 per household. <\/p>\n
Heat pumps work by transferring heat from outside air into the home. They can both heat and cool a home in one system, effectively eliminating the need for an air conditioner and a furnace, thereby saving about $1,400 annually in household heating bills, the government said. <\/p>\n
Homeowners below the median income who purchase eligible products are offered a $10,000 rebate, while others receive $2,000. <\/p>\n
In Ontario, the Home Renovation Savings program offers rebates of up to $12,000 for a variety of upgrades, including insulation replacement, window replacement and even solar panels. <\/p>\n
In Alberta, the Clean Energy Improvement Program offers up to 100 per cent for certain upgrades up to $50,000 depending on the municipality. The fixed-rate loans are tied to the property, meaning the new owner can continue the payments. <\/p>\n
Despite the various options, more than half of Canadians are unaware of what grants and subsidies are available to them and 43 per cent say not enough is being done to support homeowners who make energy efficiency upgrades. <\/p>\n
This comes as Canadians brace for an expensive winter, with more than 60 per cent of them worried about the running cost of their homes, which jumps to 72 per cent for those with children under the age of 18. <\/p>\n
Nearly a third worry about how they will afford to heat their homes, while 37 per cent said they dread opening up their energy bills. <\/p>\n
Many Canadians have begun making sacrifices to make ends meet, with 21 per cent saying they are taking shorter showers, 34 per cent planning to only heat the room they\u2019re in and 24 per cent putting off essential home maintenance. <\/p>\n
\u201cThis strategy has the potential to cause serious damage to Canadian homes across the country and in some cases may pose a significant danger,\u201d the report said. \u201cSkipping a furnace service can lead to less effective heating or even dangerous fumes coming into the home.\u201d <\/p>\n
Sign up here to get Posthaste delivered straight to your inbox.<\/strong><\/em> <\/p>\n Canada\u2019s most influential business people are warming up to Prime Minister Mark Carney\u2019s economy policy. <\/p>\n The Business Council of Canada found that 80 per cent of respondents back his approach, though they have doubts he can carry out the vision. <\/p>\n More than half of the executives believe complex regulations are Canada\u2019s biggest economic obstacle, while 19 per cent believe it to be the country\u2019s tax competitiveness. <\/p>\n Read more here. <\/p>\n There was a time when investors cared about valuations, but with the advent of passive investing and robo-advisers, the framework that once governed sound investing is almost forgotten, warns investing pro Martin Pelletier. <\/p>\n Pelletier says the mainstream consensus among many investors and strategists now appears to be to downplay high valuations and the potential for a bubble. However, the elephant is still in the room. Read his column here <\/p>\n The FP Atlantic Economic Report takes you behind the scenes of the business world in Atlantic Canada. We\u2019ll bring you insights from CEOs, government leaders, investors and economists on what\u2019s making the regional economy tick and where it\u2019s heading next. Sign up here <\/p>\n Want to learn more about mortgages? Mortgage strategist Robert McLister\u2019s Financial Post column can help navigate the complex sector, from the latest trends to financing opportunities you won\u2019t want to miss. Plus check his mortgage rate page for Canada\u2019s lowest national mortgage rates, updated daily. <\/p>\n Visit the Financial Post\u2019s YouTube channel for interviews with Canada\u2019s leading experts in business, economics, housing, the energy sector and more. <\/p>\n Today\u2019s Posthaste was written by Ben Cousins with additional reporting from Financial Post staff and Bloomberg.<\/em> <\/p>\n Have a story idea, pitch, embargoed report, or a suggestion for this newsletter? Email us at posthaste@postmedia.com . <\/p>\n Bookmark our website and support our journalism:<\/strong> Don\u2019t miss the business news you need to know \u2014 add financialpost.com to your bookmarks and sign up for our newsletters here<\/em> <\/p>\n <\/img> Many Canadians are unaware of programs that are meant to help them handle living expenses as the winter months loom and the cost of living rises. Several provinces and the…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[31],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-79886","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","category-economy"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pantheregroup.com\/api\/wp\/v2\/posts\/79886","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pantheregroup.com\/api\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pantheregroup.com\/api\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pantheregroup.com\/api\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pantheregroup.com\/api\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=79886"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.pantheregroup.com\/api\/wp\/v2\/posts\/79886\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pantheregroup.com\/api\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=79886"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pantheregroup.com\/api\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=79886"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pantheregroup.com\/api\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=79886"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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\nAre you worried about having enough for retirement? Do you need to adjust your portfolio? Are you starting out or making a change and wondering how to build wealth? Are you trying to make ends meet? Drop us a line at wealth@postmedia.com<\/span> with your contact info and the gist of your problem and we\u2019ll find some experts to help you out while writing a Family Finance story about it (we\u2019ll keep your name out of it, of course).<\/span><\/div>\n
\nMcLister on mortgages<\/h2>\n
\nFinancial Post on YouTube<\/h2>\n
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Posthaste: 8 million Canadians are confused over energy bill grants, report says<\/a>
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2026-10-29 12:00:23<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"