If you already have a central AC system, a heat pump is more or less a drop in replacement. The heat pump becomes both your heat and AC unit. Heat pumps are no

If you already have a central AC system, a heat pump is more or less a drop in replacement. The heat pump becomes both your heat and AC unit. Heat pumps are now the most premium option on units offered by the well known names in HVAC- Trane, Carrier, etc. In terms of suitability for your climate, they should work just fine for most people- they start to struggle if you are in an area when temps get down to about 10 degrees Farenheit, though they improve in this area each year. Even if you live in an area that cold, there are options to mitigate this- leaving your current furnace hooked up to be turned on during those cold periods, etc. What it comes down to is it just gets more expensive if you live in these colder areas, but over time the energy savings should give you a return on your investment in less than ten years. My Air conditioner blew this fall, so I am actively in the process of getting bids for heat pumps.