Of all the emerging energy options, why is it that solar power for homes seems to be rising above the rest as the most attractive for investors?
Some look at this and see it as a no brainer. After all, the Earth receives more energy from the Sun in just one hour than the whole human race uses in a year. Solar energy comes to us free of charge. It’s sustainable, clean, easy to harness and it’s not going to run out any time soon.
Relatively speaking, the industry surrounding solar power for homes is a bit player in the whole U.S. energy marketplace. Solar power for homes accounts for about one percent of all the energy produced in the US, but this figure is changing fast. In 2000 the solar power for homes industry accounted for 300 megawatts annually. In 2006, that figure had risen to more than 2,000 megawatts according Ron Pernick and Clint Wilder in their book The Clean Tech Revolution. This rise is continuing at an even steeper incline as the years go by and the impact of the so-called ‘energy-crisis’ begins to dawn on people.
With government subsidies, tax incentives, rebates and innovative financing strategies, it’s no wonder those in business are fashioning a range of financing strategies to ensure that the solar power for homes industry takes off in a big way.
The solar power for homes industry has become very agile, developing many unusual financing strategies. Many prospective house buyers are happy to pay more for a ‘green’ property. Add to that the attraction that, over time, solar power for homes saves a fortune.
No wonder then that the solar power for homes industry is booming. Ever since the wholesale price of oil went up to $100 per barrel people have been looking for alternatives. There is a growing voice in the US crying out for ways to keep the production of domestic energy within US national boundaries. Of course solar power for homes fits the bill perfectly.
Meanwhile, the cost to introduce solar power for homes continues to drop. Little wonder both residential and commercial consumers are seeing investment in solar power for homes as a smart move.
That’s not to say that there are no obstacles to the growth of solar power for homes. The up-front costs involved have frightened many people off. Your average US home would require an investment of between anywhere between $8,000 and $15,000 to pay for installing a full solar power for homes set up including the solar panels and all other essential equipment.
There are now two main ways to overcome this difficulty. The first is for home and small business owners to obtain a loan. You could get the loan for the solar power for homes system itself, or you could structure it into your already existing home mortgage, thereby incorporating your solar power for homes costs into your pre-existing monthly outlay.
The other way is called a power purchase agreement (or PPA for short). Here, you don’t have to own the installed equipment so you only pay for the solar energy that is used. All the required equipment is installed by the supplier. The equipment remains the property of the installation company. Meanwhile, the customer is billed for amount of solar power for homes that is used.
“Purchase power, not panels,” says Sun Run, a California-based company offering you a 20-year contract to install and maintain their equipment at half the price of an entire solar power for homes system. You get 13.5 cents per kilowatt hour fixed rate for the full 20 year period. This is well below predicted California prices according to RenewableEngergyAccess.com, and they don’t really take into account the massive increases we can expect as fossil fuels become more and more scarce.
Can you see how this now becomes a realistic money-saving option to invest in solar power for homes? … and it’s further helped along by aggressive government action in support of the solar power for homes industry. Although minor compared to the massive amount offered by federal government to support the traditional fossil fuel energy producers, state subsidies have included the 2006 California Solar Initiative. This $3.3 billion tax incentive scheme set a goal, by 2017, to have solar power for homes fitted on one million roofs across California. An outline of US-wide incentive programs can be seen at the American Solar Energy Society website.
With government-backed assistance and innovative financing, investors in solar power for homes can clearly see the opportunity for profit. With numerous rebates, tax credit schemes, incentives, subsidies and innovative financing methods, it is becoming cheaper to install solar power for homes. Meanwhile, landlords and home owners can see that they can charge a lot more because of the “green” tag.
As the solar power for homes technologies continue to improve dramatically, the amount of sunlight required to give back the necessary solar power for homes is reduced. Thereby, solar power for homes becomes a realistic option in more and more US states and other nations abroad. Clearly, the future is bright. The future is solar power for homes!
From Sam Deane,
your solar power for homes guide,
at www dot go solar power for homes dot com.
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Photo via iStockPhoto. Info via nuwireinvestor.com
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by Sam Deane, unless otherwise expressly stated, is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.
Great to see a ton more options for folks wanting to go solar. What we all really need to see is a gross feed in tariff like in Germany that pays a premium for all electricity produced by a system. While Germany has far less sun than many other countries, their gross feed in tariff made them a world leader in solar power uptake.
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