Solar Energy Picking Up Steam?

Author:	Lucas Jones
Source:	Homes Discovered
Date:	August 29, 2006

An increasing number of Americans are becoming interested in having a solar power option when they buy a new home.  Solar power can help reduce or pay for all the energy needs in a new home, especially out west where sunshine is plentiful.  Not only that but solar energy can help slow or stop global warming, reduce fossil-fuel pollutants, give homeowners tax incentives, and increase home values by tens of thousands of dollars.  Who wouldn't want solar power? Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has recently started the ball rolling.  He signed into law a bill known as the "Million Solar Roofs Initiative," part of which would make solar power a standard option on all new single-family homes in developments of 50 or more units beginning January 1, 2011.  Also, earlier this year California's Public Utilities Commission approved a $3.2 billion "California Solar Initiative" which includes incentives that would cover a third of the cost of residential solar systems large enough to cover all the home's electric needs. The question then is will homeowners choose the solar option? Or will they go with more traditional upgrades such as countertops and cabinets which raise the value of the home? Homes with a solar system would be rewarded with a near-zero electric bill regularly, which, over time could pay for those cabinet and flooring upgrades.  Solar energy systems are also one of the best cost-vs.-value improvements, which means that a solar system can boost a home's value by tens of thousands of dollars and hold that value better than traditional upgrades.  This is especially true in these high-energy-cost times. A home with a solar system can reduce your monthly electric bill to almost nothing and at the same time increase your home's value by $17,000 or more.  Big solar power systems can recoup as much as 157 percent of their cost in value returned to the home vs. 75 percent for kitchen remodels.  You could also be eligible for tax breaks and at the same time you could be doing your part for the environment and the energy crisis.

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