CEIP in St. Albert: 1.62% Financing and $1,400 Toward Your New Furnace
St. Albert has the lowest CEIP interest rate near Edmonton, and a flat $1,400 that goes a long way on an average-sized job.
If you’re a St. Albert homeowner facing a new furnace, heat pump or water heater, here’s what’s on the table.
The City runs its version of CEIP at the lowest interest rate in the region, and it puts a flat amount toward your job rather than a percentage. On an average-sized replacement that flat amount goes further than a percentage would. Here’s what it covers, what it costs, and where the queue stands.
What you get
1.62% interest.
The rate can move, but the City caps it and it can never go past 3%. Even the worst case lands below most equipment financing and well below a line of credit.
$1,400 toward the job, from the City.
A flat amount rather than a percentage, applied against what you borrow once the work is finished. On an average furnace or water heater replacement it covers a real share of the bill.
Up to 20 years to pay it back.
Repaid through your property tax bill. The exact term depends on the equipment: a furnace runs up to 16 years, a tankless water heater up to 13.
Nothing to us up front.
The program can cover the full cost of eligible work, and it advances our deposit directly to us, so we're not asking you for one. The smallest job it will finance is $3,000.
How the $1,400 actually works
Here’s the plain version, because the program’s own wording is confusing.
Think of it as the City making a payment on your loan for you. You never receive the money. It comes straight off what you owe.
Here's a $12,000 furnace and heat pump:
| Our quote | $12,000 |
|---|---|
| What you pay us up front | $0 |
| What your loan starts at | $12,000 |
| The City's $1,400 | – $1,400 |
| What you pay back | $10,600, at 1.62% |
Because it’s a flat amount rather than a percentage, the $1,400 goes furthest on small and mid-sized jobs. On a straight furnace replacement it covers a real chunk. On a $40,000 whole-home project, a percentage would be worth more — but you’d also be paying a higher interest rate somewhere else.
Three things to know:
It comes at the end.
You get it after the job is done, your final energy evaluation is complete, and your paperwork is in — not when you're approved.
You only get it if you borrow.
It's tied to your financing. Pay cash for the job instead and there's nothing for it to come off. You'd be leaving $1,400 behind.
It can run out.
There's a limited amount, first-come first-served, one per job. The City states plainly that it can't promise the money will still be available or how long processing takes.
And to be clear: the $1,400 doesn’t come out of our price. We quote $12,000, you finance $12,000, and the City’s $1,400 comes off your loan on top of that.
The waiting list
St. Albert is taking waiting list applications right now. New applications go on the list and get processed first-come, first-served as room opens up.
Applying early costs you nothing and gets you a better spot. Check with the City or Alberta Municipalities before you plan around a specific date.
What's covered
Heating and cooling
A high-efficiency furnace, a heat pump (sized to handle at least half your heating), central air conditioning, a high-efficiency boiler, an HRV or ERV, a geothermal heat pump, or an ECM furnace motor.
Water heating
A tankless water heater, a heat pump water heater, a high-efficiency tank water heater, or a drain water heat recovery unit.
Everything has to be ENERGY STAR certified. Any equipment we’d recommend for an Edmonton-area winter already meets the requirements.
Worth noting: air conditioning and tank water heaters are covered in St. Albert. Neither is covered inside the City of Edmonton — so don’t assume a rule you read about Edmonton applies here.
The step most people don't expect
St. Albert requires two energy evaluations by a certified Energy Advisor — one before work starts, one after it’s finished. We can’t do them for you, and they’re a condition of your financing.
The first has to happen before anything gets installed. You pay for it yourself, then ask to have both added to your financing and get that money back once the job is done. So it’s out of pocket for a while, not gone.
Book the Energy Advisor early. Waiting on one is the most common reason these jobs get delayed, and it sits right at the front of the process.
How St. Albert compares
Every municipality runs its own version of CEIP. Here is where each one stands.
| Where you live | Interest rate | Toward your job | Most you can borrow | Term | Open today? |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| St. Albert | 1.62%never past 3% | $1,400 | 100% of the job | 20 years | Waiting list |
| Sherwood Park | 2% | 5% of the job | Capped at your yearly property tax | 20 years | Closed — waiting list |
| Sturgeon County | 3% | 5% of the job | $50,000 | 20 years | At capacity — waiting list |
| Spruce Grove | 3.5% | 7.5% of the job | $50,000 | 25 years | Full — waiting list |
| Edmonton | 6%fixed | None | $50,000 | 20 years | Nearing capacity — waiting list |
| Leduc | Was about 1.35% blended | Was $1,350 | — | — | Closed to new applications |
| Stony Plain | — | None | — | — | No program |
Figures current as of July 2026. Rates and waiting lists change — confirm with your municipality before planning around a date.
Is this right for you?
Probably yes if:
- Your furnace is old and you're planning ahead
- You can wait a few weeks to a few months for the waiting list and the evaluations
- You'd rather keep your cash
- You're staying in the house a while, or you don't mind passing the balance to a buyer
Probably not if:
- You have no heat right now
- You need this done in the next week or two
- You want the equipment paid off outright with nothing attached to your title
If you’re in the second group, we finance through FinanceIt, which moves quickly and doesn’t involve the City.
What you do pay for yourself
We’d rather say this plainly than let “nothing down” do more work than it should.
You pay us nothing up front. The program advances our deposit straight to us, so we don’t ask you for one. That part really is zero.
Two costs can still come out of your pocket:
The first energy evaluation.
You pay the Energy Advisor yourself before work starts, usually a few hundred dollars. You can add both evaluations to your financing and get that money back after the job, so it comes back to you. But it leaves your account first.
Anything the program won't cover.
If part of the job isn't eligible, or the total runs past your approved amount, you pay us for that portion directly. Work around the equipment, such as venting, electrical or duct changes, is where this usually shows up.
What we provide
Three things, specifically.
A quote your application will accept.
The program only takes estimates from an approved contractor, and the quote has to be detailed enough for the City to work from. You get a properly sized system, a written number, and any part of the job the program won't cover marked clearly.
Guidance at every step.
CEIP has more moving parts than most homeowners expect: the application, two energy evaluations, the completion form, the deadlines. We walk you through the order things happen in and point you toward a certified Energy Advisor for your evaluations.
The install, done properly.
Sized for your home, installed to program specification, and documented so your final evaluation passes cleanly. By a company that will still be here in ten years if a warranty question ever comes up.
We’ve been family-owned in the Edmonton area since 1976, we’re rated 4.8 stars across more than 400 Google reviews, and we’re an approved CEIP contractor — which the program requires, and so is any trade we bring with us.
St. Albert has been one of our strongest markets for years. If the timing doesn’t work for a furnace that’s already struggling, we’ll tell you straight and show you the alternatives.
What we don’t do: run the program, approve applications, or decide who gets funded. That’s the City and Alberta Municipalities. Anyone who tells you they can get your application approved is overselling.
Book a free estimate
The first step is finding out what your home needs and what it costs. That visit is free, takes about an hour, and the written quote is the document your CEIP application is built on.
Want the full picture, including how St. Albert compares to the rest of the Edmonton area? Read our complete CEIP guide.
Modern Air & Water is not affiliated with the Clean Energy Improvement Program, Alberta Municipalities, or the City of St. Albert, and we don’t administer or approve applications. Rates, amounts, limits and availability are set by the City and change over time. Check stalbert.ca or ceip.abmunis.ca for current details. Figures current as of July 2026.