VA Energy Efficient Mortgage (EEM) Savings Calculator
Do the upgrades actually pay for themselves?
Enter your own assumed interest rate to see financed-project results, or choose cash payment to view cash-project savings and payback.
We do not publish or preload rates. Any rate you enter is your own assumption, not a quoted or available rate.
Educational estimate only—not a Loan Estimate, credit decision, commitment to lend, or guarantee. Actual eligibility, rates, fees, payments, and terms may differ.
Compare upgrade cost with estimated utility savings
Purpose and assumptions
This tool compares an eligible project cost of no more than VA's $6,000 EEM maximum with an entered utility-savings percentage and, if selected, the added principal-and-interest estimate.
Savings are a user-provided forecast, not an energy audit. Financing assumes the entered project cost is added to the loan at the rate and term you enter; VA does not permit an EEM above $6,000.
Interpretation and next step
A positive monthly difference means only that the entered savings exceed the modeled added payment. The 10-year result also subtracts the upfront cost or modeled payments and remaining financed balance, as applicable. Neither result establishes project value or loan eligibility.
Eligible improvements, documentation, appraisal treatment, transaction structure, and approval depend on current VA requirements and lender review. The model excludes maintenance, taxes, insurance, rebates, home-value changes, and transaction costs.
Inputs to verify
- Average monthly utility bill
- Documented project cost capped at $6,000
- A user-supplied savings percentage
- Cash or financed treatment
- A user-supplied rate and term if financed
Simple-payback example
A hypothetical $220 monthly utility bill multiplied by a user-assumed 25% reduction gives $55 of monthly savings. A $5,000 cash project divided by $55 is about 91 months of simple payback. That result is before maintenance, changing utility use or prices, rebates, taxes, insurance, and other excluded costs. When financed, the 10-year result subtracts both payments made and the remaining project balance, so principal is not counted twice as a full upfront cost.