Solar Energy Smart Money Investment

Is Solar Energy a Smart Money Investment for You?

Is Solar Right for You and Your Home and Solar Buy vs Lease By Solar Direct

Is Solar Right For Your Home?

You know how many kilowatts of solar you need- but is a solar system right for your home?

Space:

Is there enough square footage on your roof to put fit your solar array? Keep in mind that fire departments and municipalities will often require a certain amount of roof-space around the array.

If you're limited to a small roof space, consider high efficiency solar panels or a ground-mounted solutions.

Roof:

The ideal orientation for your solar array is true south, even though both East and West-facing roofs can also work.

Solar can be installed on just about any roof surface: composition shingle,spanish tile, flat or metal roof.

Remember: Your solar system isn't going anywhere for at least 25 years so you should install the system with a roofer. When solar installers and roofers work in tandem, you can avoid voiding the roof's warranty.

Shading concerns:

If you have any trees, chimneys, or anything that could shade your solar array, micro inverter systems are a better option than traditional string inverter systems.

Solar Buy vs Lease

Many people with hopes of going green face the decision to buy or rent a renewable energy system, yet are not aware of the problems with solar leases. The decision to change any home or business to renewable energy is an important one, and every consumer should fully understand the differences between renting and purchasing these systems.

Practically since their invention, sun-powered energy panels have been deemed “too expensive” to own, and any home or small business owner is better off entering a contractual agreement. However, technological advancements in recent years have significantly reduced the cost of ownership, and a new system can fit into any budget. Although it’s true that most leases for these systems are at a fixed rate with no down payment, many customers do not know that the leases contain an ‘escalator clause’. This clause causes payments to increase over time. With an increasing rate built into the contracts, customers find that the cost of renting exceeds their average utility bill in just a short period of time.

Several states offer a variety of tax incentives and other benefits, but only to the owner of the solar panels. One of the problems with solar leases is that the consumer is only renting the equipment; therefore all financial benefits are funneled to the lender of the systems. The federal government currently offers a 30% tax credit on the cost of installation, but only to the person or entity that owns the panels. Some states also offer significant cash rebates to purchasers that can reach up to $6,000!

More problems with solar leases arise when a home or building owner wishes to sell their property. The potential buyer must assume responsibility for the rental agreement. If the buyer does not, the original signee of the leasehold must buy out the remainder of the agreement, or otherwise default. This can present a difficult situation when faced with an attractive offer to sell that is hindered by the requirement to spend money in order to avoid financial delinquency.

The world is shifting to solar fast, and that means the government incentives to do so are quickly disappearing.

It’s not unimaginable that in the near future, homeowners will be faced with the choice of either continuing to purchase power off the electrical companies or become independent suppliers of power to the electrical companies. While the latter will provide freedom from big corporations it will also have the drawback of no longer being subsidized–making it much more of an upfront financial burden to bare.

No doubt the energy companies have read what the solar trend spells for their future–it’s been a message we’ve known for a long time.

However, someone who owns photovoltaic panels can increase the market price, and advertise the incentive of savings on utilities to any buyer without complicating matters with another monthly payment. After the short one and a half day installation time (on average), sun-powered energy systems require little maintenance, if any, throughout the life of the structure. However, setups that are borrowed are owned only by a company that, over time, will aggressively advertise for its customers to upgrade to newer panels. The financial problems with solar leases include the cost of the system to correspond with the ever-increasing price of average utilities. However when one purchases a system, a new owner can essentially see their investment pay for itself in as little as four years.

A common misconception of investing in photovoltaic panels for a home or small business is that the systems are only effective in specific geographical climates. This worry can be disregarded; solar panels have been proven to work all over the world. This also means that any location in the continental United States and Hawaii is capable of supporting energy from the sun. Thousands of customers nationwide are utilizing renewable energy, and that number continues to grow as more people learn the benefits of owning this technology while recognizing the problems with solar leases.

How Solar Energy Works In Your Home