Low-cost home retrofit loans by January

Borrowers will be able to get unsecured loans from €5,000 to €75,000, repayable over 10 years. The money is for works such as insulation, solar panels and heat pumps and can be used together with grants from the Sustainable Energy Association of Ireland (SEAI).

All lenders are being invited to offer the loans so they should be available from a range of banks, credit unions and perhaps An Post.

Those lenders will get a subsidy from the State and a guarantee of support from the European Investment Bank if borrowers default, which will allow them to lend at a lower rate than would normally apply.

Home improvement loans attract different interest rates, depending on the institution, but these new loans are expected to have rates around 2pc lower than similar products on the market. ​

The scheme was first announced two years ago, but the arrangement was only formally signed off on in recent days. Environment Minister Eamon Ryan said it would help people “in the middle” who were not eligible for free home energy upgrades but did not have savings and could not afford a full-price loan.

He said the scheme was designed to be not only low-cost but low on paperwork too.

“Access will be simple and speedy with an emphasis on reducing the administrative burden,” he said.

“This means householders can concentrate more on making their homes warmer and more economical, not on the paperwork.”