How to Buy Solar
Solar Financing options for your Bay Area home
How much does a solar power system cost?
PG&E Electric rates keep going up, while solar panel
prices continue to drop. That means going solar is becoming an even smarter and
more affordable choice. At SolarCraft, we offer a variety of purchasing options
to fit your needs and budget, including financing programs where your monthly
payments can be less than your current utility bill. The sooner you switch, the
sooner you save. Start today with a SolarCraft home solar electric system and
protect yourself against rising utility costs for years to come.
Cash Purchase
By purchasing your residential solar system outright, you'll maximize your savings on electricity costs compared to other financing options. Paying upfront means you can enjoy solar power without monthly financing fees, allowing you to benefit from every bit of energy your system produces. With ownership, you lock in long-term energy independence from the utility and enjoy decades of reduced electric bills, giving you the freedom to generate clean, renewable power and keep more money in your pocket.
Solar Loan
- Solar Loan: A loan, or debt financing, is the next best option to paying outright in cash. Get great flexible 10, 15 or 25-year loan terms. Monthly payments can be setup to reduce your electricity bill from day 1 with a longer term loan or pay a little more than your current electricity bill and own your system free-and-clear sooner. Once paid off, you can get free electricity for the remaining 25+ year life of the system.
- Home Equity Loan: By financing your system with your home equity line of credit (HELOC), you may be able to deduct the interest from your personal income taxes (consult with your tax advisor), thereby further reducing your costs and accelerating ownership of your system. Additionally, you can easily pay the system off at any time with a lump sum payment.
Solar Lease and PPAs
- Solar Lease: Low or no upfront payment required, but finance fees are often very high. Payments may be fixed or may escalate over the 10-20 year term. SolarCraft typically does not recommend a third-party lease due to the significant loss of savings over the lease period compounded with the potential to complicate future home sales or refinancing.
- Power Purchase Agreement (PPA): PPA's for homeowners come with higher risks and minimal savings. Like lease financing, systems financed with a PPA require little or no money down and they are owned by a third-party. The homeowner just pays for the energy generated. The third-party owner has rights to the "renewable credits" which they will sell to industrial facilities to offset their polluting carbon; thus, giving them the right to continue to pollute. Therefore, the homeowner technically is not offsetting their own fossil fuel generation, the industrial facility is. The third-party owner may change hands multiple times over the PPA term. It's complicated so read the fine print. As a course of good, ethical business practices, SolarCraft does not offer PPAs.
Government Sponsored Renewable Energy Loans
- SCEIP (Sonoma County Only): Under the SCEIP program, the county will finance the cost of the system and the homeowner pays the money back through property taxes.
- PACE Program (Property Assessed Clean Energy) Financing: Similar to SCEIP, participating cities will finance the cost of the system, which is paid back through property taxes.
