Green deal in the press.

[TedM]

The Green Deal Finance Company (GDFC) has today confirmed that initial interest rate for finance packages available under the Green Deal energy efficiency scheme will stand at 6.96 per cent.

The underlying rate means that when operating fees are taken into account indicative interest rates on a financing package of £5,000 will range from 7.67 per cent to 7.96 per cent depending on the duration of the loan.

The company said that due to the fixed costs associated with the administration fees households and businesses would get a better rate of interest if they undertook a wider range of building improvements.

For example, a Green Deal package of £1,500 that only undertook basic insulation would result in a maximum interest rate of 9.34 per cent, but a wider package of measures worth £5,000 would result in an annual interest rate of 7.96 per cent over 10 years or 7.67 per cent over 25 years.

Breaking: Green Deal Finance Company confirms 6.96 per cent interest rate - 25 Jan 2013 - News from BusinessGreen

 

[Gavin A]

That's disgraceful at a time when the UK government itself can borrow at 2%, so if they'd directly borrowed to fund this scheme even with a 1% markup to cover admin costs the rate could have been 3-3.5% (as I believe it was in Germany when they ran a similar scheme).

This highlights the absurd devotion of this government (new labour was as bad) to the concept of private finance to fund public projects rather than actually using state borrowing at much lower interest rates to fund it directly.

 

[Vegelen]

Just heard about a fantastic new energy scheme run by the government where you can borrow lots of money at mega interest rates and save lots of money on your energy bills.
Its called "The Green Spiel".

 

[Berneray]

Its not only the Sun thagt thinks it is a non started....its also the Guardian

A Green Deal but not a great deal | Money | The Guardian

 

[Berneray]

And here is another slant on the Green Deal................Have a look on the interent and in the Home Improvement sections of the newspapers at the number of companies that have suddenly appeared with Green Deal in their name....for them its like Solar all over again.

Its a simple marketing opportunity with the backing of the government. They can let the UK Government market and publicise the campaign...then they can piggy back on the legitimacy of the scheme.....while at the same time completely miss-selling a whole range of Green Deal products.....and will use their own in house fiance instead of Green Deal finance....

Take windows and doors for example. They will never ever make the Golden Rule. So why are Anglian, SaveHeat, Cold Seal ect ect all running adverts for windows under the Green Deal banner....

Simple. Becuase they can use the legitimacy of the scheme to sell windows....financed not by Green Deal but by their own finance...

And exactly the same will happen with the larger solar companies....They will use the Green Deal banner .....to sell solar. As both solar and windows will appear on Energy Performance Certs as recommendations...but with Organge NOT Green ticks...so where will the shortfall come from....Inhouse finance of course...

Watch this space.....

 

[SolarRoofSols]

Just interested to see whether those that have registered as advisers/assessors are fully geared up for GD? I remember a while back someone said that they still had not seen the software to input the assessments yet - has this been resolved yet?

 

[mdovey]

I can't help wondering if the Green Deal is intended to be a failure - given all the soft launches and other problems.

It was always going to be a hard sell - the government has been beating the drum that the austerity measures were the fault of careless lending and excessive borrowing. People are generally trying to pay off their debts rather than taking on new ones. Despite the fancy packaging the Green Deal is basically a long term loan, at a time when people are trying to reduce their debts.


Paying back via energy bills is just window dressing, adding additional bureaucracy and middle men who want their cut. The "golden rule" is just a little too much like previous "too good to be true" financial schemes, at a time when endowment, PPI, and other mis-selling schemes have reduced trust in such financial instruments to an all time low.

Linking the load to the house rather than the individual may have seemed at first glance like a good idea for those not certain whether they would stay in the house long enough to see the payback. However, this just adds to the concerns - would you be able to sell a house with loans attached? In practice, the seller would either need to pay of the loan earlier, or the seller might insist on paying a reduced price to take into account the outstanding loan. Either way, the seller ends no better off then if the loan was a personal one. If anything it pushes up the cost of buying and selling houses (yet another task for the surveyor) at a time when the housing market is in an all time slump!

And then despite all that, the loan rates turn out to be worse than existing commercial loans. Anyone wishing to undertake such energy measures would be far better off in extending their mortgage - both in terms of the interest rate, and early repayment charges.

Or have I missed something?

Matthew

 

[Elmer BeFuddled]

There was a piece on GD BBC Breakfast this a.m. First I'd heard of it in the media (as I've given up on papers!).

Basically "say you buy a boiler for £2k. Pay back at £20pcm. Your £60 pcm fuel bill would "reduce" to £40pcm thus you're still paying £60pcm fuel bill/loan. Real benefits kick in as fuel prices rise. The "loan" is attached to the property, not the person, so if you move..."

I think that's what they were saying, I was still yawning.

 

[grantr37]

you call 6.9% " eye-watering"? . my bank have just offered me a personal loan at 26.9%. no that's a rip off. if i ever saw one.

I think what the problem is will be getting charged £11,000 for some Glass wool in your loft or £55,000 for some solar panels then getting your electricity bills put up by a big % for the rest of your life to pay for it......wonder how many people will get nothing done and get charged money for it....


The Banks will have a keen investment interest in this no doubt, as will foreign owned electricity companies...


On a lighter note, SSE just put 12 wind turbines up behind my mothers house and E.on have just made public on a scheme that they have won permission for for up to 50 odd turbines......got a "welcome to our wonderful job creating innocent perfect great for the scenery" (aka local farmers pocket with big rent) scheme....


we got told 12 and that's it and within 8 days of the so called "commissioning" by siemens....another "scheme" announced....foreign companies making sure they ruin the UK for tourists and TV.....


OUT OF THE EU, FOREIGN COMPANIES OUT!

 

[grantr37]

I have seen large wind turbines springing up on farms in 2's and 3's right next to the main roads and villages.....and I bet we are paying for them with free subsidies that only farmers get for millions of pounds......farmers get paid "subsidies" of hundreds of thousands of pounds a year for nothing.....they should be allowed to go bust if they can't manage a farm properly.....nobody else in this country gets that kind of money for free....

 

[Gavin A]

it's pretty nuts that the only way GD makes sense is via the cashback scheme, when GD was supposed to be replacing the existing grants schemes.

Why is it that only those who take out an extortionate loan are now entitled to a grant towards their energy saving installation?

 

[grantr37]

Who do you bank with, Pounds to pocket...[/QUOT


nope. RBS. their idea of replacing overdraft. trouble is, it's a far higher rate than the O/D. bloody numpties.

I was going to say it sounds like quick skid or whatever it was called....

 

[grantr37]

Just done A GDR

£750 cash back
Eco funding

the customer eyes will be watering with happiness ....

I bet your local car dealers eyes will be watering too, and your bank managers ;(

 

[mdovey]

it's pretty nuts that the only way GD makes sense is via the cashback scheme, when GD was supposed to be replacing the existing grants schemes.

Why is it that only those who take out an extortionate loan are now entitled to a grant towards their energy saving installation?

7% interest plus setup fee plus annual fee - someone will be making a profit (presumably private sector rather than public sector).

However, where does the cost of the cashback scheme come from - the profits of the financial companies or the tax payer?

Matthew

 

[grantr37]

And here is another slant on the Green Deal................Have a look on the interent and in the Home Improvement sections of the newspapers at the number of companies that have suddenly appeared with Green Deal in their name....for them its like Solar all over again.

Its a simple marketing opportunity with the backing of the government. They can let the UK Government market and publicise the campaign...then they can piggy back on the legitimacy of the scheme.....while at the same time completely miss-selling a whole range of Green Deal products.....and will use their own in house fiance instead of Green Deal finance....

Take windows and doors for example. They will never ever make the Golden Rule. So why are Anglian, SaveHeat, Cold Seal ect ect all running adverts for windows under the Green Deal banner....

Simple. Becuase they can use the legitimacy of the scheme to sell windows....financed not by Green Deal but by their own finance...

And exactly the same will happen with the larger solar companies....They will use the Green Deal banner .....to sell solar. As both solar and windows will appear on Energy Performance Certs as recommendations...but with Organge NOT Green ticks...so where will the shortfall come from....Inhouse finance of course...

Watch this space.....

Bait and Switch