Solar Panels Cost For Real People

The names have been changed to protect the intelligent.  This is a true story.  Well, kinda true.  It's at least true enough generally to get you to read this far.  Keep going.  But, this is about a group of folks who decided to install solar panels on their own home in Massachusetts. Based on the salesman’s guidance, they installed a 10kW system with 34 solar panels that covered 612 square feet. The total expenses before any rebates and savings? $55,000.

The Price Of Installation

Wow! Appears like a lot, huh? Especially since most areas are now reporting that the price to install solar panels is averaging around $10,000 to $15,000 nowadays. Based on the solar energy production predictions, this system was proposed that it would produce approximately $2,069 of power per year (based on a rate of $0.15kW per hour).

Those Rebates Though

This is just like a rebate you receive with any other product. Buy our product, and we’ll supply you $1,000 off immediately. And in the event of solar energy systems, these rebates are given by the state. Most states cap the cap to a certain amount. In this situation, the rebate amount was capped at $2,000. And, just like most rebates, this is a one-time proposal. Total Expense Saved: $2,000.

Tax Credits

Both state and federal governments offer tax incentives for installing solar power systems. These are also capped per a certain percentage and product. In the state of Massachusetts, the state boundary is 15% capped at $1,000. The federal government offers a one-time tax credit that is a touch larger – 30% off all fitted purchases. Total Expense Saved (State): $1,000; Total Expense Saved (Federal): $16,500.

SRECs

This acronym is Solar Renewable Energy Credits. And this is a kind of revenue generation, usually handled by solar aggregators. Sold at auction, these credits are purchased by companies so they can say they operate their businesses on a portion of green energy. Most states permit you to sell these credits for up to 10 years from the installation of your system. The aggregators who sell them for you, just like economic advisors, will take a portion of the income you generate from these. There’s a whole science to taking a SREC aggregator and estimating your savings per year. For the Massachusetts couple, we are describing, their SRECs estimates were meriting $3,725 per year. Total Amount Saved (one year): $3,725.

Net Metering

This was discussed earlier as the credits you receive from the utility company for feeding your unused energy into the grid. Total Expense Saved: $2,069 per year.

Numbers

What do these figures suggest and how soon can you assume to pay off your solar energy system? For the first year solely, if we add up all of the money savings from rebates and revenue, $25,294 is skimmed off the top. Bringing the total prices down from $55,000 to $29,706. It’s still a very expensive piece of equipment, but that’s a lot of savings from just rebates and credits alone. Keep in mind that a 10kW system is also double the size as what the majority of people install in their homes. So, in actuality, the total expense of a system, for most people, is going to be approximately $15,000 or so (for a 5kW system). Of course, dependent on all the features you want.

Panels For Solar And Costs

So, a savings of $25,294 in the first year is fabulous. But, most of these are one-time proposals, so, what you can expect in the years to come? Rebates and tax credits were a unique offer, so we can’t figure those into our savings for subsequent years of controlling a solar energy system. But, the SRECs are possible for nine more years after year one, and the proceeds from net metering run the lifetime of your solar panel system. Based on annual returns from the first year of using SRECs, this Massachusetts couple prognosticated a savings of $3,725 per year for the next nine years. And with a net metering standard of $2,069 savings per year over the life of the system (25+ years), we can predict that it would take a little over five years to recoup the price of the solar energy system. Past five years and the systems paid off and you’re living off straight profit from the sun. 

HahaSmart is a great place to bring all of these factors together and get your the very best price.  

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