The society said the enhanced range built on its support for sustainable and energy efficient projects and was being introduced against a backdrop of increasing mortgage rates and the wider cost-of-living crisis.
Ecology’s self-build mortgage starts with an initial rate of 4.65 per cent while construction works are underway.
This rate changes to 4.99 per cent from 1 August and on completion of the works, borrowers are eligible for a C-Change discount of up to 1.50 per cent. This is based on the Standard Assessment Procedure (SAP) rating in the Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) or if the property is accredited to the exemplary AECB Building Standard or Passivhaus standard.
The changes also include the addition, for the first time, of dedicated discounts for homes built to a SAP rating from 100 to 109 and SAP ratings of more than 110, of 1.00 per cent and 1.25 cent respectively, which Ecology is calling A+ and A++. This reflects the environmental performance of homes built to a standard that generates more energy than they consume.
Ecology said the discounts were designed to incentivise and encourage borrowers to build their home to a better energy efficiency rating leading to a long-term saving in both energy and borrowing costs.
New range of C-Change Sustainable Homes discounts
| Energy standard | New discount | Change | Previous discount |
| EPC B (SAP rating 88+) | 0.50 per cent | – | 0.50 per cent |
| EPC A (SAP rating 92-99) | 0.75 per cent | – | 0.75 per cent |
| PHPP Modelled | 0.75 per cent | – | 0.75 per cent |
| AECB Building Standard | 1.00 per cent | +0.25 per cent | 0.75 per cent |
| EPC A (SAP rating 100 – 109) (‘A+’) | 1.00 per cent | +0.25 per cent | 0.75 per cent |
| EPC A (SAP rating 110+) (‘A++’) | 1.25 per cent | +0.50 per cent | 0.75 per cent |
| Passivhaus | 1.50 per cent | +0.25 per cent | 1.25 per cent |
Building regulations require that a SAP calculation and a predicted on construction EPC is submitted for new dwellings prior to building work commencing.
The decision to enhance the discounts comes at a time when the government is recognising the need to reduce the carbon impact of house building and has stated that new homes much reduce carbon emissions by 75 per cent by 2025.
Ecology offers staged payments for self and custom-build mortgages which allow wide range of construction techniques including those using non-standard materials and modern methods of construction. `
The mutual also offers a renovation mortgage where a property is being purchased for renovation or retrofit. They will consider lending on homes in any condition, as long as the works required improve the energy efficiency of the property. On completion of the renovation the society’s retrofit discounts apply.
Daniel Capstick, mortgage manager at Ecology, said: “Now more than ever it’s important that lenders play an active role in incentivising green building and helping to reduce energy bills. We’ve been leading the way on sustainable mortgages for over 40 years, and we hope that the updates to the C-Change discounts will encourage our borrowers to build even more energy efficient homes, which is critical in the fight against climate change.”
