After you get past the mechanics of how solar works, you should come to realize that “going solar” is more like making a financial investment than doing a capital improvement on your home. Sure, we're bolting solar panels to the roof of your home… But, aside from the great environmental benefits, the primary function of solar is to save you money --- or more importantly make you money.
Solar Financing Basics
Like any investment, you should start doing some research. We suggest trying to answer these questions:
Let's examine each of these in a bit more detail below:
The first thing we need to understand is what contributes to the cash flow of the investment. In simple terms, we need to examine the following equation: electric savings + solar income – solar cost = profit. Let’s break this down into detail:
Electric Savings
Savings [cost avoidance] is money that you save from not having to pay the utility company for electricity. Fully delivered electric rates (generation + supply) range from $0.145 to nearly $0.22 per kWh in NJ, but we will use $0.185 per kWh for our example.
Solar Income
Income is generated through the sale of Solar Renewable Energy Certificates (SRECs). As registered SREC aggregators, we create, aggregate, sell and dispense the proceeds of SRECs to our clients that purchase systems from us. SRECs provide our clients with 15-years of income at the rate of $85 for every 1,000 kWh of solar energy produced.
Solar Cost
Cost for a purchased solar panel system is the total principal and interest associated with paying for the system. The principal is determined by calculating the fully installed system price less 30% for the Federal Investment Tax Credit. Interest is only included for projects that require solar financing. Cost for a solar lease or power purchase agreement (PPA) is the total of all monthly payments (including annual rate increase escalators) for the term of the agreement.
2 - What Are Your Solar Investment Goals?
Most homeowners considering solar are focused on 1 of 3 goals:
Long Term Return On Investment
For individuals that have access to capital (money sitting in their savings account or underperforming investments), investing in solar is a great option. The goal is to get the solar panel system to pay for itself as quickly as possible. This is called the payback period (which can range from 4 to 8 years depending on site conditions)… The shorter the payback period the greater the long term profit… because once the system pays for itself all of the saving and income is yours to keep!
Cash Flow (creating a profitable annuity)
Here we want to use the bank’s money to fund our investment --- with the objective of being cash-flow positive within the very first year of operation. We offer over 100 solar loan packages with terms ranging from 6 months to 20 years. Our most common solar loan term is 15 years, as this typically generates a consistent cash flow starting in the very first year.
Saving Money
Generally speaking, solar leasing programs attempt to focus on saving homeowners money. In our opinion the only homeowners that should enter into a lease agreement are those that cannot take advantage of the Federal Incentive Tax Credit. That being said, $0 down lease or PPA agreements include “free” installation in exchange for purchasing the solar energy produced on your roof from the leasing company.
3 - Are you better off leasing or buying
Be very careful if you are considering entering into a Solar lease and power purchase agreement (PPA) because you will basically be renting your solar PV system. They give you many perceived financial benefits of installing a solar power system without having to pay for it (but remember there is no free lunch).
4 - What's The Best Solar Financing Option For You?
We offer solar financing options for every budget. Whether you want to maximize your financial returns or find an easy solar solution to save money and help the environment, there is a solar panel financing option that works for you. For individuals interested in owning their solar panel system, there are three choices to pay for their solar panel system.
1- Pay Cash
Individuals with cash on hand, will make the best return on their solar panel investment because they will not have any interest charges. The focus here is on the time it takes to pay yourself back and break-even. We see the breakeven points ranging from 4 to 7-years depending on the suitability of the property for solar and the equipment choices.
2- Home Equity Loans
For individuals who have equity in their property, a home equity loan or line of credit may be a great alternative. Just remember that these loans are secured to to your personal property.
3- Solar Loans
Solar loans are a great solar panel financing option if you want to own your system for just $99 out-of-pocket. With over 100 solar loans available through Green Sun Energy Services, you can finance the entire cost of your system. Some of these solar loans may be secured (using your solar panel system as collateral) or unsecured (tied directly to your personal credit). Solar panel loan terms range from 5, 10, 12, 15 and 20-years at fixed rates from 2.99% to 9.99% depending on your credit.
When you're thinking about financing, it's important to understand how the loan term and the interest rate impacts how the solar loan meets your financial objectives of short terms savings (longer loan term) or long term profit (shorter loan term).
When evaluating loans from multiple solar installation companies, it's best to ask for the same loan term. Note that each installer may have a different Gross Price for the system and offer different loans, so it's important to ask for the same loan term.
Then you can do some simple math to determine the Total Cost of Principal & Interest Per DC Watt. The formula is fairly simple:
1. Calculate the Total Cost of Principal & Interest as follows: Total Loan Payments MULTIPLIED BY The Loan Term
2. Calculate the Total System Size as follows: Number of Solar Panels MULTIPLIED BY DC Rating of Each Panel
3. Calculate the Total Cost of Principal & Interest Per DC Watt as follows: DIVIDE the Total Cost of Principal by The Total System Size
Example: Let's assume you are going to purchase 30 pv solar panels that are 315 watts each; and you've secured a 10-year, 2.99% loan with payments of $233.30 per month. Okay, The Total Cost of Principal & Interest is $233.3 X 120 = $27,996. The Total System Size is 30 X 325 = 9,450 Watts. So, the Total Cost Of Principal & Interest Per DC Watt is $27,996 DIVIDED BY 9,450 = $2.96.
Evaluating Solar Financing Options
Once you've selected your equipment and made the smart decision to purchase (not lease) your solar panel system, it's time to discuss price and financing... and, more importantly the true cost of solar ownership. Here are a few examples of solar investment objectives (Reference to Chart below to see the details):
Objective A. I want to save as much as possible right now!
As outlined in the example below, the 20-year solar loan has the lowest monthly payment at just $154.48 per month, so it provides really nice short-term savings. However, when you multiply $154.48 per month by 240 months you wind up spending $37,075.2 (or $3.92 per fully financed DC watt) in total principal & interest over the terms of the solar loan.
Objective B. I want the lowest purchase price!
Okay, we don't blame you. The lowest purchase price in the table below appears to be $30,838.06. This comes with a 10-year solar loan at 6.99%... not a bad deal. Now, let's add up the 120 loan payments at $249.38 per month to get a total cost of principal and interest of $29,925.6. GREAT, that's a LOT lower than the $37,075.2 (or $3.17 per fully financed DC watt) for the 20-year solar panel financing option.
Objective C. I want the lowest cost of solar ownership!
Smart, although the price sticker of the 10-year, 2.99% solar panel loan option seems the highest at $34,673.17. But, the lower interest rate produces the lowest monthly cost for a 10-year solar panel loan at just $233.30 per month. Now, when we multiply 120 months of loan payments by $233.30 our total cost of principal & interest is just $27,996 (or $2.96 per fully financed DC watt). So, this is the best deal!
Conclusion
If you are focused on short terms savings, a longer solar loan terms is best for you. If you are focused on long term savings, paying cash or taking out a short term solar loan is best for you. BUT, make sure you focus on the Total Cost Of Principal & Interest per DC Watt (as opposed to the solar installation price) as illustrated in the table above.