Town of Carrboro - Worthwhile Investments Save Energy (WISE) Homes and Buildings Program
Administered by Town of Carrboro
You can finance energy efficiency upgrades like heat pumps, insulation, lighting, and water heaters with a 3% loan for up to 10 years, with a minimum of $1,500—helping lower your utility bills while supporting local job creation. To apply, download the application from the town website and provide your previous 12 utility bills; you'll need to continue reporting utility bills for 3 years after completion so the town can track your energy savings. This program is open to Carrboro businesses and nonprofits with fewer than 50 employees.
The Town of Carrboro's WISE program creates consistent retrofit demand among small commercial customers who can finance eligible upgrades—including HVAC systems, controls, insulation, and commercial equipment—at favorable 3% terms over up to 10 years. Contractors should note that loans are secured with equipment notes and require a minimum of $1,500 per project; customers must provide 12 months of utility history at application and ongoing utility data for 3 years post-completion to demonstrate savings.
WISE is a revolving loan fund seeded by DOE American Recovery and Reinvestment Act grants plus Town matching funds, designed to become self-sustaining through repayments. It targets commercial buildings and nonprofits under 50 employees within Carrboro's town limits, offering 3% fixed-rate loans up to $1,500–$[amount not specified] for efficiency retrofits across heating, cooling, insulation, lighting, and other technologies. The program requires applicants to submit 12 baseline utility bills and monitor energy performance for 3 years post-retrofit, enabling rigorous measurement of program outcomes aligned with DOE's national Better Buildings initiative.
Program details
- Program ID
- 4567
- Last updated
- 5/16/2025
Eligibility
- Sectors
- commercial nonprofit
- Technologies
- water heaters lighting lighting controls/sensors heat pumps air conditioners programmable thermostats building insulation motors motor vfds custom/others pending approval food service equipment vending machine controls commercial refrigeration equipment
Program summary
The Town of Carrboro is providing loans to Carrboro businesses and non-profits with fewer than 50 employees to increase their energy efficiency. The current interest rate is 3% and the maximum loan term is 10 years. The minimum loan amount is $1500. Loan applicants must give the town their previous 12 utility bills, and must agree to continue submitting their utility bills for 3 years after the work is complete so the town can measure the performance of the retrofits and the success of their program.
A wide variety of efficiency improvements are eligible for financing through this program.
See website above for more information.
This program is part of the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Better Buildings Program. The DOE has awarded over $500 million in federal funds to more than 40 states, local governments, and organizations to administer local programs targeting a variety of building types. Combined, these local programs are expected to improve the efficiency of more than 170,000 buildings through 2013 and save up to $65 million in energy costs annually.
Contact & resources
- Additional resources
Please verify current program details with the administering agency before making any financial decisions.
