You've looked at using solar power for your electricity for a while now. You've used tools like Google's Sunroof Project The Oil Killers:When Google's Data Meets Tesla's Visions and the Brains of MIT The Data Killers:When Google's Data Meets Tesla's Visions and the Brains of MIT MIT. This article connects the dots between three different technologies that, when put together, will change the world. Read More You may even have worked on our other articles such as 5 Types of Solar Home Electric Systems and Choosing the Right One 5 Types of Solar Home Electric Systems and Choosing the Right One 5 Types of Solar Home Electric Systems and Choosing the Right One Want to know how you can make your life greener, your wallet a little fuller, and less reliant on the power company? Install one of these home solar electric systems! Get more information or How to use a battery bank to protect your home from power outages How to use a battery bank to protect your home from power outages How to use a battery bank to protect your home from power outages Your computer office can continue to function during a power outage because you have a UPS. Can you put your whole house on a UPS? Yes. Yes you can. Read more . You know what you want and probably how much it will cost up front.
You already know that solar power systems have a better payback time and that the price of solar panels is always going down. You know you're going to add value to your home and protect your family, so what's holding you back? shock sticker? You may need to figure out what the cost will be after accessing the various federal, state, and city incentives available to you.?
Let's take a look at how to solve that.
Most people save this step for last when calculating the cost of a solar power system. Don't.
There's a very good reason to find your local, state, federal or other incentives first. Knowing there are incentives will help you fill in the parts of the calculation that make solar seem infeasible 4 Companies That Will Help You Run Your Home With Solar for Free 4 Companies That Will Help You Run Your Home For Free Solar Power With all the electronics running in your smart home, you need some juice to power it all. And there's nothing better than not worrying about rising utility bills by using solar power. Read more . You'll be thinking in the back of your head, "Yeah, that sounds like a lot, but I'll get 30% of that in income tax credits." Or, “It seems expensive, but I can't forget there's a $1,500 rebate for this, too.”
For readers in the US, check out the State Incentives for Renewables and Efficiency Database. If you are in another country, a quick web search will provide you with the information you need. For example, Australia has the Solar Energy Subsidy and Renewable Energy Subsidy Information site. Many countries, states, and provinces have similar sites that can help you find incentives for your area, too.
In the US, there is currently a federal tax credit of 30% of the cost of your system, with no upper limit. That means you can get a non-refundable tax credit for 30% of the cost of your solar energy system. 6 Advantages of Solar Panels You Probably Haven't Considered 6 Advantages of Solar Panels You Probably Haven't Considered the solar panels. Read More Visit the Energy Star Federal Tax Credit page for more specific details.
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Now, that doesn't mean you can reduce the cost of your solar power system by 30%. According to the Solar Energy Industries Association, it is, “…a dollar-for-dollar reduction in income taxes that a person or company claiming the credit would otherwise pay to the federal government.” The US Department of Energy says, “If the federal tax credit exceeds the tax liability, the excess amount can be carried over to the next taxable year.”
To really get a grip on that number and what it will mean for you, you should talk to your tax or financial planner. 6 The best free tax software to file your next return. 6 The best free tax software to file your next return if you're tired. than paying to file your taxes, you'll love these six free options for filing your state and federal forms. Read More For the sake of simplicity, let's say your system costs $25,000 to install. Your tax credit, in dollars, would be $25,000 times 0.30, or $7,500. You would pay $7,500 less in federal income tax Doing your taxes? 5 Excel formulas you should know doing your taxes? 5 Excel Formulas You Need to Know It's two days before your taxes are due and you don't want to pay another late filing fee. This is the time to harness the power of Excel to put everything in order. Read More
His $25,000 system is now down to $17,500. Not bad. But note that the percentage value drops from 30% to 25% after 2019, and then drops to 22% after 2020. Yet another reason to do it sooner than later.
Most states or provinces have some type of incentive for people to use renewable energy. 3 Home Alternative Energy Projects That Could Cut Your Electric Bill 3 Home Alternative Energy Projects That Could Cut Your Electric Bill Let's see how we can tackle some simple DIY alternative energy projects and save tons of money. Read More These incentives can come in the form of rebates, income tax credits, sales tax incentives, feed-in fees, energy credits, or any combination of these. There are too many regions and programs to take a look at all of them, so let's take a look at some of the United States. We're also going to pretend that you can get each of these incentives in your project.
The Connecticut Clean Energy Finance and Investment Authority rebate program will reimburse you up to 51.3 cents per watt of grid-connected power. This is how and why the Amish live off the grid This is how and why the Amish live off the grid There is a group of traditionalist people, who reject many of the technologies of modern society, including public grid electricity :the Amish. That, however, does not prevent them from enjoying some of the comforts of technology. Read More The Connecticut calculation can get a bit complicated, but this type of rebate is common and can be estimated by multiplying your system's wattage output by 51.3 cents.
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That equation looks like 6,000w X $0.513/w =$3,078. Let's call it $3,000 for the easier math. His $25,000 system that turned into a $17,500 system is now down to a $14,500 system. Sweet. You have lost $10,000.
Renewable Energy Credits Is Solar Energy Sustainable? 4 problems to solve before the solar revolution Is solar energy sustainable? The 4 problems to solve before the solar revolution Read More are the result of converting a perceived benefit into a product that can be bought and sold. Typically, the state or an electric company will pay you a lump sum per kW of production capacity over a certain number of years of the RECs you would have received. The Delaware Sustainable Energy Solar Renewable Energy Credit (DLV) program provides you with, “...an upfront payment of $450/kW in exchange for the first 20 years of SRECs created by a solar system. ” For your 6,000w or 6kW system, you could get $2,700.
That's a good amount of money for anyone. But you may not want to jump either. These credits are a commodity, after all. You may want to do some more research on these RECs as they will be worth more than that in the long run. Just something to think about.
Let's say you take the $2,700. Now his system is down to $11,800. Cha-ching!
In some states, you can get a cut on your property tax for installing a solar power system. Did Elon Musk save us from fossil fuels? Did Elon Musk save us from fossil fuels? Read more . New York has a state law that could give you a property tax break for installing solar power, but has left it up to local governments to decide whether or not to honor it. If you are in a municipality that honors it, you could be, “...exempt from tax for a period of 15 years to the extent of any increase in assessed value due to the system.”
So what does that mean? Well, that might take some determination. Let's say your tax assessment is currently $100,000. You then install your solar photovoltaic system and your tax assessment goes up to $110,000. The increase in assessed value due to the system is $10,000, right?
The average property tax rate in New York State is 1.5% of your property's assessed value, according to SmartAsset.com's property tax calculator. Since that $10,000 won't be part of the assessment, you won't have to pay the extra $150 a year in property taxes for it. You get it by multiplying $10,000 by 0.015. $150 isn't much, but every dollar saved is three dollars earned, right? In addition, this benefit lasts 15 years. Assuming your property's assessment never changes, that's $2,250 in taxes you don't have to pay. Your system is down to $9,950, but it will take a while to get that $2,250 worth back.
This may not sound like the best incentive, but it's better than none, especially considering that solar energy systems are adding considerable resale value to homes now. Solar energy systems used to be considered a liability when selling your home, but the shift in environmental awareness has changed that. According to the Berkeley Lab report, Exploring California PV Home Premiums, people are willing to pay about $15,000 more for a solar-powered home over a comparable home without it. Expect the valuation to continue to rise..
Similar to the federal income tax credit, some states will also offer an income tax credit. Oregon's Residential Energy Tax Credit (RETC) program could earn you a tax credit of $1,500 per year, for up to five years. The total credit is calculated by multiplying one watt output of your system by $1.50. You can only claim $1,500 of that year for five years or until the amount is exhausted; whichever comes first.
Your system is 6,000 watts, so that's a $9,000 tax credit. But as you know, 5 years for $1,500 is $7,500. That's the maximum tax credit you'll get on this deal. That's still a lot of cheese, as the kids would say. His system is down to $2,450. Okay, not really, because you're not likely to get ALL of these incentives, but the point is getting clearer, right?
You may be wondering how much feed-in tariffs (FiT) and net metering will reduce your costs. Unfortunately, it won't have much, if any, effect on the cost of your system. The best case scenario is that it eliminates your power bill, but you'll likely still pay $30 or $40 a month to stay connected to the grid. Several of these programs also require you to contract with the benefits provider for an extended period of time. It could be as long as 20 years. And you also submit your RECs for many of these programs.
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It also seems that the feed of the tariff incentive is disappearing. So don't count on these incentives too much. En otros países, como Canadá y Australia, es más probable que estas tarifas FiT y de medición neta sean un beneficio neto.
Si todo lo que obtuviste fue el crédito fiscal federal y un reembolso como el que ofrece Connecticut y podrías tener independencia energética por aproximadamente $ 10,000. Independencia energética completa La red eléctrica de Ucrania fue pirateada:¿Podría suceder aquí? La red eléctrica de Ucrania fue hackeada:¿Podría pasar aquí? Un reciente ataque cibernético en una red eléctrica ucraniana ha demostrado que nuestros temores eran fundados:los piratas informáticos pueden atacar infraestructuras críticas, como las redes eléctricas. Y hay poco que podamos hacer al respecto. Read more . No se quedará sin energía durante la próxima gran tormenta, o cualquier tormenta en los próximos 20 años más o menos.
Después de un año fuera de la red, ni siquiera sabrá cuánto cuesta la energía. Pero puede estar seguro de que va a ser más de lo que está pagando ahora. Entre 1960 y 2010, el costo por kWh de electricidad aumentó de aproximadamente 2,3 centavos a apenas 12 centavos. Probablemente esté pagando en algún lugar alrededor de 15 centavos / kWh en este momento, o más. $ 10,000 le compra un boleto de eso - para siempre.
¿Los $ 10,000 todavía parecen demasiado? Bueno, ¿compras el almuerzo todos los días? ¿Recoge un café de lujo 7 ideas de regalos de menos de $ 150 para los amantes del café 7 ideas de regalos de menos de $ 150 para los amantes del café Lea más todos los días? Si haces ambas cosas, estás gastando $ 10,000 en 4 años sin nada que mostrar. Si estuviera dispuesto a gastar $ 10,000 en comidas fuera de casa, ¿por qué no gastaría eso para obtener independencia energética y seguridad para su familia? Eso es algo para pensar.
