Help My House

The "Help My House" pilot program in South Carolina demonstrated that on-bill financing can effectively reduce energy costs for rural residents without upfront expenses. By providing low-cost loans repaid through electric bills, the program achieved a 34 percent reduction in energy use across 125 participating homes, saving an average of $288 per home annually after loan payments. The model aimed to avoid billions in new power plant capital costs and reduce greenhouse gas emissions by targeting inefficient older homes and low-income residents who lack access to conventional financing.

• The "Help My House" pilot program, involving 125 homes in 2011 and early 2012, resulted in a 34 percent reduction in energy use, totaling 1.35 million kWh, and an average annual saving of $288 per home after loan payments.
• The program utilized on-bill financing, where low-cost loans are attached to the electric service account rather than the individual, allowing for repayment over 10 years or less via monthly bills.
• The pilot's financial performance showed that loans averaging just under $7,700 were on track for a simple payback period of 6.6 years, with an expected net saving of over $8,500 per home over 15 years.
• The long-term goal of the program as of 2010 was to retrofit over 200,000 homes, potentially saving members $280 million annually, reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 6.7 million metric tons over 10 years, and avoiding or delaying $4 billion in capital costs for new power plants.
• The success of the South Carolina pilot contributed to the creation of federal initiatives, such as the 2014 USDA Energy Efficiency and Conservation Loan Program (EECLP), which supports rural utilities in implementing on-bill financing.

APA

Environmental and Energy Study Institute (n.d.). Help My House. https://www.eesi.org/obf/case-study/helpmyhouse

Chicago

Environmental and Energy Study Institute. Help My House. n.d. https://www.eesi.org/obf/case-study/helpmyhouse.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Environmental and Energy Study Institute |title=Help My House |url=https://www.eesi.org/obf/case-study/helpmyhouse |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{environmentalandenergystudyinstitutendhelp, author = {{Environmental and Energy Study Institute}}, title = {{Help My House}}, institution = {Environmental and Energy Study Institute}, url = {https://www.eesi.org/obf/case-study/helpmyhouse}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }