With the rising costs of goods, a global pandemic, loss of jobs and 80% of all dollars circulating the country causing mass inflation, more and more homeowners are looking to save money. How are they doing it? Rooftop solar.
According to the Solar Energy Industries Association’s 2021 Q4 Solar Market Insight Report, one out of every 600 US homeowners is now installing solar each quarter and those numbers are projected to increase.
With energy costs on the rise and job growth stunted, you might be wondering if going solar is worth the initial investment.
1. Lower your electric bill
The most popular reason for going solar is saving money. If you’re going to be paying for electricity anyways, why not get it at a cheaper price?
Utility companies are often known to raise their rates on an annual basis. They usually cite infrastructure improvement as the sole purpose of rate hikes.
Solar savings are calculated on a state-to-state basis but will taper off at least 30% of your annual electricity costs. If you’ve recently gotten a swimming pool, an electric vehicle, or simply want to save more money – going solar is a great option to look in to.
2. Solar investment tax credit (26%)
One of the best reasons to go solar has to do with your taxes!
Benjamin Franklin once said, “In this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes.” Lucky for us, we live in a time where we not only have solar technology to help save us money, we’re also incentivized by the federal government to go solar.
In 2016 the solar ITC was at 30%. Since then it’s dropped to 26% and will go down year-after-year until it expires in 2024. If you want to get a break from uncle sam, investing in solar panels might be a smart move.
So long as your solar system is installed at your primary or secondary residence (United States) before December 31, 2023, you own the system, and you’re the original user – you may be able to qualify.
When the government doesn’t like something, they tax it. When they do, they subsidize it. Take advantage of the tax credit this year while it’s still at 26%!
3. Increased property value
Will solar increase the value of our home? Chances are this question has crossed your mind. While a lot of realtors who are new to solar don’t like it because it’s an added step in the selling process, many homeowners who are going solar love it.
According to a 2019 national study conducted by Zillow, homeowners who had solar panels installed saw the value of their homes increase by an average of 4.1%. The study was conducted using market data from homes sold between March 2018 and February 2019.
States that benefit the highest increase in home value are:
- New Jersey: 9.9%
- Pennsylvania: 4.9%
- North Carolina: 4.8%
- Louisiana: 4.9%
- Washington: 4.1%
- Florida: 4% $9,454
- Hawaii: 4%
- Maryland: 3.8%
- New York: 3.6%
- South Carolina: 3.5%
Where do homes in California rank? Since California has various metro populations, the value of a home with solar fluctuates based on where you live. Homes in San Francisco saw the homes value increase 4.4% while Los Angeles was 3.6%.
4. Energy independence
Chances are you chose your current utility company because they were the only option available. Before solar was mainstream, utility companies were the only option available.
This left you with dirty, unpredictable and sometimes an unreliable (power outages) energy experience.
Now that renewable energy has become more mainstream, you don’t have to play roulette with your electric bill anymore. Homeowners finally have a say in where, how, and who they get their electricity from.
With battery storage technology advancing every year, energy independence is here to stay. Now you can generate your own power from the sun, store it for later use when utility rates are high, and save money by doing so.
5. Create more jobs
Saving money also means helping someone else earn a living wage. The solar sector creates a ton of job opportunities for everyday folks just like yourself.
We have solar engineers who create design plans, site surveyors who inspect your roof, solar installers who put up the panels, sales reps who help you with the numbers, solar service transfer agents that help when homes with solar are bought and sold and many more.
When you decide to go solar, you’re creating jobs in the solar industry and helping your community thrive. In some solar states like California, utility commissions are proposing to penalize homeowners for going solar.
In order to create a more sustainable future, homeowners need to take a stand against public utilities commissions who want to decrease and eventually eliminate solar incentives all together. The bottom line is this: solar creates jobs.
6. Help the environment
We’ve only got one planet to live on, so we might as well protect it. Every year the production of solar cells continues to gain efficiency. Not only in the amount of electricity produced per panel but also in the emissions it takes to create the panels themselves.
Shifting away from fossil fuels to renewable energy sources like wind, hydroelectric and solar help to reduce the amount of greenhouse gases we pump into the atmosphere.
Everyone human that lives on planet earth has a carbon footprint. This means that we create pollution with our everyday living habits. From the cars we drive, to the foods we eat, to how we consume electricity.
Don’t think this is a good reason to go solar? In 2021 the SEIA estimated that over 127 million metric tons of carbon dioxide was offset by residential rooftop solar alone.
That’s the equivalent of 155,597,543 acres of forests preserved in one year according to the EPA’s greenhouse gas calculator.
One small act like installing solar panels might not seem like much, but when everyone does their part it can make a huge difference in reducing CO2 emissions.
7. More than one way to go solar
With solar energy there’s an option for all homeowners. Since solar is a custom fit product, that means there are different ways that you can save.
The most popular option is a power purchase agreement, also known as a PPA. This is where you buy the electricity the solar panels produce at a fixed or annual rate increase.
You can also lease the solar equipment and of course buy your solar system as well. Each option requires a different credit score with most solar providers requiring a minimum credit score of 650 or greater.
However, there are also solar options for low income families as well. Homeowners with credit scores as low as 550 can get approved for home solar as well depending on what they qualify for.
Are These Enough Reasons to Go Solar?
Energy costs are only going to rise and solar power is here to stay. You can protect yourself from power outages with battery storage, go solar for zero money out of pocket and lower your electricity bills once and for all.
The monthly savings on your energy bills is just one important reason to go solar. Now that you have all the reasons to go solar, the next question is always — is it the right time?
If you own your home, then the best time to go solar was yesterday. With residential solar energy incentives dwindling and more and more renewable energy regulations piling on, you should already have solar panels up on your roof.