Bright Future As Berkeley Starts Solar Program
March 1, 2009 by editor
Filed under Homes, Solar News
Homeowner Jeanne Pimentel shows off her new solar panels to Berkeley Mayor Tom Bates. She'll pay for them over 20 years in property taxes.
Two Berkeley homeowners received checks for their new solar panels on Friday, becoming the first to flip the switch on the city’s much-ballyhooed, closely watched solar financing program.
“I’m a guinea pig, but there’s no way I could have afforded solar otherwise,” said Jeanne Pimentel, an editor who has 11 solar panels on her Allston Way home. “Because of this, I can help solve our energy problem without putting any money up front.”
Berkeley’s program allows property owners to pay for solar panels through a 20-year assessment on their property taxes. Pacific Gas and Electric Co. rebates and new tax breaks guaranteed in the federal stimulus package reduce the cost further, so most homeowners begin saving on electric bills immediately.
Twelve states, including New York, Washington and Colorado, and 50 California cities, including San Francisco and San Diego, are following Berkeley’s model and are closely watching how the program unfolds.
Financial Incentives Mean California Home Solar Is Hot
January 14, 2009 by editor
Filed under California Solar Initiative, Homes, Solar News
Sean Murphy, a designer and installer with Solar Universe, carries a solar module to be placed on the roof of Ernie and Doris Dobkins' home in Lincoln. Doris Dobkins said the federal tax credit pushed her to take the solar plunge. "All of my neighbors are watching," Dobkins said. "Someone had to take the first step."
While many in this troubled economy worry about making investments, Doris Dobkins didn’t think twice about sticking her money on her roof.
“Instead of paying PG&E, I’m paying myself,” said Dobkins, a Placer County homeowner who recently spent $36,000 for an electricity-generating solar system.
Based on projected savings in her electricity bills, a state rebate and a new federal tax credit, Dobkins expects to recoup her investment in six years.
The family anticipates saving $100 to $150 a month on Pacific Gas and Electric Co. bills, and the utility company will credit them for excess electricity generated, she said.
California & Arizona Find New Options For Tapping Into Solar Energy
December 20, 2008 by admin
Filed under Homes, Solar News
Although sunshine is free, a rooftop a solar system can cost $30,000 to $50,000 — enough to discourage even ardent environmentalists when financing is hard to find and households are holding tight to their cash to weather a recession.
But more affordable options are being touted by the solar industry. In recent months new financing programs have been introduced for homeowners who prefer to lease a solar system or to buy the power produced by a solar system on their home that is owned and maintained by someone else.
