'Green mortgages' taking root'Green mortgages' taking root

First came green homes. Now comes a mortgage to match.
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So-called green mortgages are the latest innovation in the push to promote more energy-efficient houses, whose owners enjoy lower utility costs thanks to solar panels, improved insulation, thermopane windows, and other money-saving products. Also called energy-efficient mortgages, they allow home buyers to qualify for larger loans on the premise that they can afford higher monthly payments due to what they save on heat, water, and other utilities.

In effect, the mortgages pass energy savings on to homeowners in the form of increased buying power.

"It's the most efficient way to allow people to capitalize on the value that green homes create," said Lisa Davis, development project manager for Olmsted Green, an energy efficient, 287-unit residential complex being built in Dorchester, "and it has the potential to make places more affordable to people over the long term."

The concept is still in its infancy. And the mortgages are easier to secure at large-scale housing developments that incorporate "green building" construction where energy savings have been documented by engineers. Green financing is harder to come by for energy-efficient, privately owned, single-family homes, since the savings are more difficult to calculate and must be done on a case-by-case basis.

But energy-efficiency advocates, lenders, and housing activists say green mortgages are a small but significant step toward making homes more affordable and reducing dependence on nonrenewable energy sources.

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