Ownership

Advantages

• Incentives
• Greater Overall Return

Disadvantages

• Requires Money (Cash or Loan)
• Longer Payback Term

Options

Cash Purchase

The cash purchase is what most customers think of when considering solar energy. Obviously, using your own cash to buy a system means you will be entitled to greater overall returns via the incentives. At the same time, purchasing a system with cash means that you it will be some time before your money is recovered.

Bank or Home Equity Loan

The beauty of a loan is that you will use someone else’s money to pay for your system. You will still be entitled to all of the benefits of owning a solar array, however, you will now have to pay interest on the loan and manage the loan payments, which will cut into the overall return on investment.

Utility Program, e.g., PSE&G Solar Loan

For some, the utility company with whom you already do business has a compelling solution. PSE&G, for one, will lend you as much as 60% of the system cost, which, when combined with the Federal Tax Credit, a rebate from the state of New Jersey, and energy savings, means a system purchased through the PSE&G Solar Loan program will pay for itself in about two years.

The beauty of this program is that PSE&G is entitled to the first 10 years’-worth of SRECs, and uses the proceeds to pay down your loan. Additionally, they offer a floor value for these SRECs, so, if the price were to fall below the floor (currently about $400), $400 would be credited toward your loan. There are many reasons why this loan is a great solution to affording solar; to learn more, please pick up the phone, send us an email or join us at one of our up-coming solar energy seminars.