Rebates that come off the price lower the amount you borrow. A rebate paid back to you later doesn't, because you pay interest on the full price until it arrives.
The rebates on a heat pump job
- Xcel's cold-climate heat pump rebate. Paid per heating ton at 5°F. Xcel gas customers get $1,500 a ton, whoever supplies the electricity. Xcel electric without Xcel gas gets $750 a ton. A mini-split that heats one room gets a smaller flat rebate.
- Power Ahead Colorado. $1,500 on a cold-climate air-source heat pump, ducted or ductless, in the Denver metro. The contractor files before work starts, and it has no income limit.
- State of Colorado heat pump discount. A registered contractor claims it and must pass at least a third to you on its own invoice line. Our estimates pass the full $1,000. The heat pump has to be sized to carry at least 80% of the home's yearly heating, so a one-room mini-split doesn't qualify.
A heat pump water heater on Xcel electric gets $750 from Xcel, or up to $1,500 when it replaces a gas or propane water heater, plus the full $250 State discount.
What the order does to a payment
Take a heat pump with a new gas furnace at $19,500, in a Denver metro home with Xcel gas and electric. Xcel's heat pump and furnace rebates, the State discount and Power Ahead take off $7,975. With ClearPath over 10 years at 5.49%, you finance $11,525 plus the 2% fee and pay $128 a month, if approved. Finance the full $19,500 on the same terms and the payment would be $216 a month, if approved.
On-bill and rebates
With ClearPath, rebates come off as an upfront credit, so you finance the price after rebates from day one. If Xcel pays less than the rebate on your estimate, the amount you financed doesn't go up.
What to look for on an estimate
- Each program by name, on its own line.
- The outdoor and indoor model numbers, so the Xcel tonnage can be checked.
- The price after every rebate, which is the number to finance.
Amounts change. Check the current rebate amounts before you count on one.
