Get Home Solar: How To Fund It, Choose An Installer, And Pick Your System
To make home solar happen, you need to do three things. Get the funding, find a good solar installation company, and pick the right type of solar power system for your house. As a homeowner, you’ll save with solar once you have it installed. With this solid advice, you can take the three steps to get home solar power that will really work for you.
Find A Solar Installation Company
Find A Solar Installation CompanyPicking the right solar installation company can save you 10% in a single step. The key is to look for companies that are small and experienced. Then, always compare quotes. Keep an eye on warranties and long term repair support. Find out the company’s track record. If they can point to lots of satisfied home solar customers but are a small enough operation that they do less than 1,000 jobs per year, you might have found the sweet spot of high quality and lower solar installation costs.
Pick Your Home Solar Power System
To tell which solar installers are a good fit, it helps to know a little about what they are offering you and how it fits with your goals. Are you looking at a roof panel system or at a ground-mounted system where the panels live in your yard? Will your system be grid-tied, grid-tied with storage, or off-grid completely? Learn your home solar power 101 vocabulary and pick the right type of system for your household and lifestyle goals. Even if no single type jumps out immediately as what you know you need, knowing the lingo will help you talk to installers as you decide together about what’s the best investment for your property as a homeowner.
Solar Installation Funding
Solar Installation FundingThe average cost of a solar installation (after tax credits) ranges from about $12,000 to $15,000 in the US. [1]Solar Energy Industries Association, https://www.seia.org/solar-industry-research-data Those numbers are current and from a nationwide sample as of 2020.) It will pay for itself in energy bill savings in 5-10 years. Not every homeowner can float the upfront investment until they see that return, though. So if it’s a little steep for your budget, you do have options.
A solar loan can help you get started. With an unsecured solar loan, you can borrow against the solar panels themselves without risking any other assets. With a secured solar loan, you borrow against your house as an asset to get lower interest rates and smaller fees. These loan options can help you make it all the way to owning your panels as a long-term investment, even if you don’t have any money to put into that upfront.
If you don’t need to own your own panels, a solar lease might help you get started. You can lease home solar panels for a fixed monthly fee and then pay by the watt for the energy you use. It’s similar to how you would lease a car and also pay for gas.
You can also look at Solar Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) and Community Solar options. With a PPA, you let someone else place solar panels on your property. Then you can enjoy paying as you go for only the solar energy that your home actually uses, without the overhead costs of installation. Community Solar programs let you co-invest with neighbors to own a system together that you share. With these options you won’t see the same long-term savings as if you bought home solar panels outright, but you will be able to get accessible clean power.