Incentives, Rebates, and Grants
Residential | Incentives, Rebates, and Grants
Despite the current financial crisis, going solar is a solid reliable investment for your home. Since your roof is probably never ‘going anywhere’ solar electric panels are probably the best secured investment you can make in today’s market. Compare going solar to traditional higher risk investments that seem to be becoming less desirable. Along with increasing your property value, going solar will protect you from rising electric rates. Now coupled with the state rebate and federal tax credits solar is a very smart long term investment.
California has limited funds for these programs, and the rebates become less generous as participation increases. If you are able to order and connect soon you will be getting the best of both worlds!
Combine the federal tax credit with the state rebates and you can save yourself a large portion off the cost of going solar that ranges anywhere from thirty to sixty percent.
REBATES: California Solar Initiatives (CSI)
The solar rebate program for California consumers are customers of the investor-owned utilities – Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E), Southern California Edison (SCE), San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E). Together with the rebate program for New Solar Homes and rebate programs offered through the dozens of publicly owned utilities in the state – the CSI program is a key component of the Go Solar California campaign for California.
- CSI general market program: A solar rebate program for customers in PG&E, SCE, and SDG&E territories. This program funds solar on existing homes, existing or new commercial, agricultural, government and non-profit buildings. This program funds both solar photovoltaics (PV), as well as other solar thermal generating technologies
- Thermal program: A solar hot water rebate program for customers in PG&E, SCE, and SDG&E territories. This program funds solar hot water (solar thermal systems) on homes and businesses.
- Single-family affordable solar homes: A solar rebate program for low-income residents that own their own single-family home and meet a variety of income and housing eligibility criteria.
- Multifamily Affordable Solar Housing: A solar rebate program for multifamily affordable housing.
- R&D: A solar grant program to fund grants for research, development, demonstration and deployment of solar technologies.
The California Solar Initiatives offer solar customers different incentive levels based on the performance of their solar panels, including such factors as installation angle, tilt, and location rather than system capacity alone. This performance framework ensures that California is generating clean solar energy and rewarding systems that can provide maximum solar generation.
Federal Tax Credits:
Property owners receive a generous federal tax credit for 30%. On an average system, combined with a state utility rebate, can result in a savings greater than $10,000! Example: A solar electric system on a typical home with a quantity of 20 solar electric panels (5 Kilowatts or 5,000 DC Watts) would cost around $25,000.00. Which makes the total paid for system about $5.00 per DC watt before rebate and tax incentives. Now the state rebate would be around $1,000.00 and the Federal Tax Credit would be around $9,000.00. The final cost (after rebate and tax credit) would be less than $20,00.00.