Heat pumps are becoming smaller and easier to install as new options hit the market in the form of minisplits and window-mounted options. But in the absence of government support, renters still face hurdles to get them into their homes.

Minisplit heat pumps have been around for nearly a decade, but have only recently begun gaining popularity in North America. They are ductless systems with an indoor unit connected to an outdoor compressor through the wall, and are much smaller and cheaper than centralized heat pumps. One retailer sells an option for C$628.

However, it’s unlikely that a unit will go into the home of a renter without a landlord’s approval, as they are not quick or easy to install, John Purkis, director of partnerships and engagement at the Building Decarbonization Alliance, told The Energy Mix. Even if the renter fronted the cost, the hard-wired unit would remain with the building after they moved out.

Centralized heat pumps, typically thought of as an investment in the tens of thousands of dollars, have alternatives meant for smaller spaces. For example, packaged air source heat pumps cost approximately $1,400 and are designed to retrofit into an existing wall sleeve.

“[It’s] why they’re a practical landlord-side option: a building with old electric baseboard heaters or old AC-only sleeve units already has the wall opening, and the landlord can swap in a heat pump unit without touching ductwork or exterior cladding,” Purkis wrote in a follow up email to The Mix.

Portable window heat pumps are another alternative entering the market. They fit into a window like a window air conditioner (AC). While a minisplit would be a permanently-installed piece of equipment, window heat pumps are plug-in units installed the same way as a regular window AC, said Sarah Riddell, senior policy research associate with Efficiency Canada.

“A real benefit of the window heat pumps is since the renter would be paying for it, and they’re portable, they could take it with them to any future homes to provide that low-carbon heating and cooling and the energy savings,” she told The Mix.

But the new technology comes with a high price tag of $4,000 and faces regulatory challenges in some places.

Nathan Horton, CEO of 1Click Energy Solutions, said window heat pumps have to be fitted into building without risk of falling out—a precaution he hopes will convince municipalities to expand their window AC policies to include them.

But “if these are going to be renter occupied… they would have to be subsidized,” Horton added, pointing to a multi-million heat pump installation project for rental homes in New York City.

His team recently partnered with the Toronto and Region Conservation Authority (TRCA)’s Sustainable Technologies Evaluation Program (STEP) to trial window heat units in Toronto, Niagara, and Ottawa.

“I don’t think the expectation that you’d have a tenant pay for these would be on the table,” he said.

Lower-cost options exist, but not currently in Canada, Purkis said. True reverse-cycle window heat pumps have reached retail shelves in the United States, but not mainstream Canadian retailers, while minisplits have arrived at a similar price point.

But in the absence of government subsidies or mandates, the combination of costs, landlord approval, regulation, and the fear of rent hikes after a heat pump’s installation all mean the cheapest, easiest option is still a less-efficient portable air conditioning unit. Some AC options that sit on the floor offer both heating and cooling for a retail price between $300 and $600.

Renter advocacy groups are concerned that landlord-led heat pump installations could leave tenants facing rent hikes or renoviction.

“We need to keep people alive right now. So we know that the long-term solution is to green retrofit older apartment buildings, and the province needs to fund these upgrades immediately, but with strict conditions,” said Dorothy Atakora-Gyan, member of the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN). “The cost cannot be passed down to tenants.”

New restrictions in British Columbia and Ontario make renovictions solely for installing a heat pump difficult, but hiking rents after installing cooling infrastructure is easier to accomplish, Lasse Hvitved, legal advocate with Vancouver’s Tenant Resource and Advisory Centre (TRAC), told The Mix. 

“I have seen multiple cases where cooling measures were a significant part of the cost that was passed down to tenants,” he told The Mix.

Rent increases for renovations in B.C. can be up to 10% above the 3% allowed annual rent increase, he said. However, landlords cannot charge tenants when the province has stepped in to help with renovation costs. This is where a government subsidy could alleviate costs being passed down to tenants.

In Ontario, if a renter installs a window AC unit where their utilities are included in their rent, landlords can charge an extra fee as of July 1. To combat high utility bills, Riddell said renters should look to purchase the most efficient unit they can afford and consider Energy Star-certified air conditioners as an option.