Article Summary:
Offering financing is one of the most effective ways for HVAC businesses to increase revenue, close more deals, and build long-term customer loyalty. Financing helps both residential and commercial customers afford major repairs and installations by spreading payments over time, making projects more accessible and boosting approval rates. Businesses can choose from third-party consumer financing, in-house payment plans, or partner programs with equipment manufacturers—often using a mix to maximize coverage and flexibility.
To launch a successful financing program, HVAC companies should clearly explain terms, assess eligibility, integrate financing into their sales process, promote it across marketing channels, and train staff to confidently discuss payment options. Tracking performance, customer satisfaction, and repayment trends is also essential.
pulseM helps streamline financing operations by automating payment reminders, centralizing communication, and providing insights into financing uptake and trends—making programs easier to manage and more profitable.
If “how to offer financing to my customers for HVAC services” has been on your mind, this guide is for you. We walk you step-by-step through the process to get the end results your business wants.
Learn why offering financing to HVAC customers is important today. Get information about different types of financing and how to launch them. Plus, read tips on how to use software for HVAC professionals. It makes starting a customer financing program easier and more profitable.
Why Offering Financing Matters for HVAC Businesses
HVAC customer financing can actually boost your business’s bottom line. Let’s look at three key ways it can increase your revenue for greater profitability while also putting you ahead of the competition.
Increasing Sales and Closing More Deals
We talk more specifically about affordability in the next section. But first, it’s worth knowing that when you offer financing to customers, you can get more sales and close more contracts.
Sometimes it’s not about a major repair or new installation being affordable, per se. This is especially true with commercial customers. They may be able to afford the new equipment, but they’d prefer to spread out the payments to better align with their cash flow.
If you can offer a customer financing that works with, say, their monthly or quarterly budget, you’re more likely to win the bid. And we all recognize that winning more jobs is the key to financial stability and reaching growth goals.
You might even be able to close a deal for a more expensive project than the client originally envisioned when you offer financing. For example, if they qualify for $10,000 of financing, they may choose a $7,000 new furnace over a $5,000 model.
Making HVAC Projects Affordable for Customers
Of course, for some folks, particularly residential customers, affordability is a prime concern. Prices for basic necessities like food, gas, and shelter have been going steadily up over the last year, according to government data.
Homeowners don’t want to choose between heat and putting dinner on the table. If you can make a furnace upgrade affordable for them via a financing plan, they will usually agree to the job. Otherwise, they’ll put off the project, and you’ll be out of a sale.
Some residential customers have yearly budgets too, similar to commercial ones. They may be waiting on a tax refund or a work bonus to do major HVAC work. But they’ll do it now if they don’t have to pay for it all up front. Again, this is a boon for your company.
Building Customer Trust and Loyalty
One of your best sources of business is happy customers, which you can attract with service financing on the spot. “I can get that new furnace installed this week for under $300 a month” is music to a customer’s ears.
Satisfied consumers will refer you to friends and family. And they’ll come back for repeat business, staying loyal to you, if they like the prices and payment plans you offer.
A homeowner may only need so many HVAC upgrades in a year or two. But a commercial customer—even a small one—may need much more work.
You want to grab that proverbial cash cow by the horns. Great sources of repeat HVAC business include:
- Apartment buildings
- Property managers
- Schools and dormitories
- Healthcare institutions
- Stores and retail centers
- Restaurants and kitchens
They need help with furnaces, boilers, air conditioners, rooftop fans, and other HVAC infrastructure.
Types of HVAC Financing Options
Not all HVAC consumer financing is the same. You have a choice about what types of plans to offer your customers. Below are three popular ones that are often used in combination for the best boost to sales.
Consumer Financing and Credit Plans
This type of financing goes through a third party, which handles all the paperwork and customer payments for you. This frees up your time for more billable tasks. It’s also much easier and faster for the customer than going to their bank, often with instant or same-day approval.
How does it work? The customer applies through the third party’s website or app, typically running a credit check and/or proof of income to qualify them.
They may have several tiers of financing based on the customer’s financial standing. Levels may cap out at various amounts or have different percentages of interest.
Some examples of popular third-party consumer financing include:
- Affirm
- Klarna
- Synchrony
- Wisetack
- Enhancify
- Housecall Pro
- Sunlight Financial
In-House Payment Plans
If you can afford it, having your own in-house financing plan can be helpful. These plans are ideal for situations like:
- Regular customers who don’t qualify for consumer financing
- Individuals new to the US who don’t have credit profiles
- Commercial clients who want more customized payment plans
The downside is that you have more to administer with these programs. That takes you out of the field, or you have to hire someone to manage them, which cuts into your profits. For this reason, many HVAC businesses use in-house programs to supplement other types of financing.
For example, you might use your plan for emergencies where a client can’t use a third party—provided you feel comfortable about their stability. Or you may use in-house financing for your business clients who are more used to personalized payment plans for large jobs.
Partner Financing Programs
These financing plans are offered in conjunction with an HVAC equipment manufacturer, like a boiler, furnace, or AC company. It’s a win-win because the customer gets to split up their payments, and the manufacturer gets a sale.
You should talk to manufacturers you use frequently about their financing programs. Be aware that some partner financing is also done direct to the consumer.
The customer applies on the maker’s website. Then, the manufacturer connects them with a local expert who can perform the installation. Usually, the financing comes from a major bank, but the manufacturer streamlines the process for the customer.
How to Offer Financing to Customers
It’s best to approach HVAC financing for customers methodically. You want to have your plans all lined up before you offer clients financing to ensure everything will go smoothly.
Assessing Customer Eligibility and Credit
First, the customer needs to qualify for financing, whether with you or another party. That means running a credit check, which will yield a credit score and/or report evaluating their creditworthiness.
This is where it can get sticky for customers. There are three credit bureaus that produce FICO (Fair Isaac Corporation) scores, each using their own algorithms. A few lenders also use systems like VantageScore, which is slightly different.
Even more confusing is the fact that there are literally dozens of FICO scores. They’re used by each bureau to assess worthiness for credit cards, car loans, mortgages, and more. A customer may think they have a good credit score, only to find out a different score was used for their HVAC loan.
That’s why having an in-house plan can be good to serve as a backup. You might know a customer is reliable and has a solid income but has a low score with the system used. This could be due to a new mortgage or high student loans from medical school, for instance.
Some people don’t have credit scores if they moved here from overseas or haven’t had a chance to build up credit over time. One example is young new homeowners. You can use your judgment in these situations, perhaps collecting a larger down payment alongside financing.
Explaining Financing Options Clearly
You should outline your financing options clearly when offering payment plans. Let the customer know who the lender is and how the application process works. They will want to know:
- Will there be a hard inquiry on their credit report?
- Is money required up front?
- What’s the monthly payment and interest rate?
- Is there a choice of payment plans available?
- Is financing tied to using a certain brand of equipment?
- How are payments made and to whom?
- How long is the loan for, and can it be paid off early?
- How does financing affect the warranty?
- Is the loan transferable if the property is sold?
Integrating Financing Into Your Sales Process
To really leverage the power of offering financing, you want to work it into your sales process. Make sure all your staff know how it works so they can discuss it when booking appointments or servicing equipment in the field.
It’s great to be able to mention it at the time of service. But it’s even more effective if you make customers aware of it sooner.
It’s smart to put a banner on your website, for instance. Include a link to the application process so clients know if they qualify even before you show up at their door.
You can also talk about financing in your print materials, such as flyers and business cards. Another great place to promote it is in your social media posts.
Best Practices for HVAC Financing Programs
As mentioned earlier, your financing program will get ideal results if you use some best practices in rolling it out. These practices include interactions with customers as well as internal processes.
Transparent Terms and Conditions
Check out the list of questions above that customers are most likely to ask about financing plans. Be sure you and your employees know the answers to all of them.
It’s smart to have written terms and conditions to give to customers to read over too. Third-party lenders will provide their own. Your in-house terms should be similar and reviewed by an attorney to make sure everything is appropriate.
Training Staff on Financing Conversations
If you’re more than a one-person company, you’ll need to train your staff on how to have conversations with customers about financing.
Discussions about financing will sometimes start when a customer books a large project. That might be installing a new air-conditioning system or four-plex boiler. The scheduler or receptionist might say something like, “We offer financing for that. Would you like me to send you the information by email before your appointment?”
Often, financing gets brought up in the field. Say a technician can’t repair an ancient furnace and has to tell the homeowner they need a new one. This is where your employee can come off like a hero.
They can offer financing over time when a customer would otherwise feel an upgrade is out of reach. It’s best, though, to have employees more or less follow a script to introduce and explain the idea. Make sure they have it down and give them printed support materials before offering financing in the field.
Tracking Payments and Performance
Of course, you’ll want to see if your financing program is helping your company. If you offer in-house plans, you’ll need to know if payments are being made on time and have a procedure for late payments.
You also want to see if a new financing system is increasing your number of customers and/or the cost of projects (revenue). Hopefully, over six to 12 months, you’ll notice an uptick in numbers that correlates to your program.
Not sure if customers like your financing options? Survey them! Be ready to make changes to your system if something is not working for your clients or your business.
How Pulsem.me Helps Manage HVAC Financing
“But wait,” you may be asking, “I need practical help figuring out how I can offer financing to my customers.” Software for HVAC businesses is a great place to start.
The platform pulseM was created just for field service professionals. It lets you put many aspects of your business operation in one place. Different functions, including financing programs and HVAC direct mail marketing, are together for efficiency and ease of reporting.
Automating Payment Reminders and Follow-Up
You’ll get more payments on time with pulseM’s automated customer reminders. And there are follow-up measures to deal with late payments and evaluate customer satisfaction.
Monitoring Financing Uptake and Trends
Remember, one key reason you’re adding financing is to increase revenue and profits. That’s why pulseM lets you track customer uptake on your financing options. You can document and visualize trends over time to ensure your program is meeting its original goals.
Streamlining Customer Communication Around Payments
Tired of texting and emailing customers individually about payments? Let pulseM handle it for you, with templates and bulk communication options that free up your time for field work that pulls in income.
Conclusion and Next Steps
Are you ready to get started with offering HVAC financing for customers? Here are some final tips to help you get the best results.
Quick Checklist to Launch a Financing Program
Start with a checklist to get your financing program off the ground:
- Decide which of the three types of financing listed earlier makes the most sense for your business.
- Contact third-party and HVAC partners to discuss financing options, and choose which ones work for your company.
- Create marketing around your new financing program, such as on your website and print media.
- Make sure you’re clear about all the terms and conditions of your financing and have details to give clients.
- Train staff in the details of your program, including how to introduce it to customers.
- Integrate your financing system with your HVAC business software to help with automation of tasks.
- Use your software data to track your program and make adjustments as needed to reach company goals.
Use Pulsem.me to Improve Financing Success
HVAC business software like pulseM can streamline launching and managing customer financing. You’ll enjoy better efficiency, and your customers will get a more professional image of your company.
And that’s just the start. PulseM can assist with customer relationships and lead management. You can also get help with marketing, branding, and customer reviews to bring in more business. It’s easy to book a demo and see how it would give your HVAC company an edge for increased profits and growth.