Warmer Kiwi Homes: Finish the Job, Avoid the Gap, Protect the Value

IAONZ’s position is clear:

Finish the job.
Many older homes (estimated to be 140,000) still need insulation, efficient heating and practical support.

Avoid the gap.
A stop-start funding gap would damage delivery capability.

Protect the value.
Warmer Kiwi Homes delivers strong public value across health, energy efficiency, household wellbeing, reduced hardship and local employment.

Read the Press Release 17 August 2026

Why certainty is needed before the election

The risk does not start on 1 July 2027. It starts earlier.

Service providers, installers, product suppliers and community partners need to make decisions about staffing, subcontractors, training, vehicles, equipment, stock, regional coverage and future investment well before the current programme ends.

Without certainty before the election, some parts of the delivery network may begin planning for wind-down, redeployment or exit in the lead-up to Christmas 2026.

A decision made too late may still create a delivery gap, even if funding is eventually restored.

What the industry survey found

IAONZ’s survey of appointed service providers and product suppliers identified:

approximately 700 people directly involved in Warmer Kiwi Homes delivery across responding organisations.

This includes people and capability involved in home assessment, product supply, scheduling, installation, heating and insulation delivery, administration, quality systems, logistics and regional coordination.

These findings reinforce IAONZ’s central concern: Warmer Kiwi Homes is not simply a grant scheme. It is a delivery system involving people, skills, suppliers, systems, funders and local relationships.

Government funding leverages local support

Warmer Kiwi Homes attracts support from councils, trusts, energy companies, lines companies, charities and community funders.

These local top-ups often help households meet the remaining cost of insulation and heating upgrades. In some areas, local support can turn a subsidised upgrade into a fully funded upgrade for households who could not otherwise proceed.

Government funding opens the door. Local funders help get the job finished.

The cheapest energy is the energy saved

IAONZ supports the next phase of home energy improvement, including solar, batteries, efficient heating, hot water, ventilation, electrification and practical finance options.

But future upgrades deliver better value when the home itself performs well.

For many older homes, insulation and the thermal envelope still need to be addressed. That means insulation, draught reduction, moisture control and quality installation.

What IAONZ is asking for

IAONZ asks all political parties and decision-makers to support a practical no-gap pathway for EECA Warmer Kiwi Homes, or an equivalent targeted programme.

IAONZ is asking for:

1. Confirm continuation before the election
   Give households, providers and the sector enough time to plan.
2. Avoid any delivery gap after 30 June 2027
   Ensure funding, procurement and contracting support continuous delivery.
3. Protect insulation and heating support
   Keep the thermal envelope at the centre for older, colder homes.
4. Build future upgrades from the existing platform
   Add solar, electrification, hot water, ventilation and finance options from a stable delivery base.
5. Recognise the full delivery ecosystem
   Include service providers, installers, product suppliers, community organisations, funders and regional partners.

EECA Warmer Kiwi Homes is proven. The need remains. The delivery network exists.

New Zealand should not allow uncertainty to create a gap that has to be rebuilt from later.

Finish the job. Avoid the gap. Protect the value.