I've no horse in this race (not a homeowner), but Technology Connections has made a series of videos advocating heat pumps, most recently this one: https://www.

I've no horse in this race (not a homeowner), but Technology Connections has made a series of videos advocating heat pumps, most recently this one: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CVLLNjSLJTQ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CVLLNjSLJTQ The gist is that heat pump technology is continuously getting better at working in cold conditions, so if the horror stories are more than 5-10 years old they may not reflect the current state of things, and in extreme situations resistive heating can always be used as a backup. Heat pumps are "just" air conditioners that point the other way, and AC is extremely common in the USA, so I'd doubt that the competency required is exceptional.