Solar panel installation for residential purposes seems to get more popular with each passing day. Across the country, people in every corner of America are installing rooftop solar systems to save money and protect our environment. However, many people don’t realize how many benefits there can be from residential solar installations.
While you certainly can save money in an eco-friendly manner, it’s important to understand the underlying machinations that drive these benefits. By fully grasping the details of the many significant benefits of a home solar installation, you can view the full picture of how residential solar can impact your life. Let’s take a look at the five main benefits of a home solar panel installation.
Reduce or replace your electric bills
For any homeowner, your monthly electric bill from the utility company likely makes up a significant part of your overall expenses. Even in an area that only receives a moderate amount of daily sunlight, a good residential rooftop solar system can often power your entire home. That means that your one-time investment in solar panels can nearly permanently end your need for energy from your utility provider.
This is especially true if you live in an area that has generous net metering regulations. With net metering, your utility company gives you billing credit for any excess electricity your solar system generates. For example, your solar system produces the most energy on bright, sunny days with plenty of direct sunlight hitting your panels. However, your solar panels will produce much less energy on cloudy days — sometimes as little as 10% of the energy produced on sunny days — and don’t produce anything at night.
With net metering, you only pay for the net energy your home needs from the grid. Therefore, any extra energy your panels produce during the day goes into the grid, and any electricity you need on cloudy days or at night comes back from the grid. If your outgoing and incoming energy requirements are equivalent (or if you produce more than you use), then you will not owe your utility company a dime.
Outstanding return on investment
The best savings account you could ever hope to find with a traditional bank will provide less than a 1% return on your investment. As for CD accounts, a five-year investment can usually bring back 1% to 1.5% in annual percentage yield. Even a 10-year government bond from the United States Treasury only brings in roughly 1.7% per year. If you’re a smart investor in the stock market, you can expect to make about a 10% profit in a typical year.
Now, let’s take a look at how residential solar panel installations generate returns for your hard-earned money. It may surprise you to learn that a solar installation can provide a return on investment that beats most traditional investment methods. Of course, the solar installation cost isn’t something to be taken lightly, as even a small residential solar system will still cost thousands of dollars.
However, you can actually generate yearly returns of at least 10% with solar power for your home. Many people even experience far greater financial benefits, approaching 25% to 30%! There are many variables involved — from your utility company’s rates to your state tax incentives and more. Still, if you purchase your solar system up-front (instead of entering into a purchase power agreement or solar lease), you can expect to save at least 10% per year compared to simply paying your electric bill.
In addition, with residential solar panels, you don’t have to care nearly as much about rising energy costs. In the last decade, the typical cost of electricity for a home has increased by 15% or more. As you might expect, it’s highly unlikely that these costs will ever decrease again. As the cost of fossil fuels continues to rise, so will energy rates charged by traditional utilities. With a solar installation for your home, you won’t have to care or even notice!
Increased property values
For the most part, solar panels for home systems tend to raise home resale values by up to 5%. Especially if your solar panels are fully owned, the new homeowner won’t have any additional financial responsibilities for them, except for routine maintenance from time to time.
If there’s still money owed on the solar panels, the math can certainly change. But if they’re entirely paid for, a residential solar system will almost always significantly increase a home’s value. If you live in an area where solar power is especially popular — like the American Southwest — your solar energy system could add even more than 5% to your resale value.
Protect our environment
There are many major environmental benefits to residential solar panel installation. The most significant is how powering your home with solar reduces pollution from fossil fuels. Instead of using natural gas or coal to generate electricity for your house, you will instead use 100% clean energy from the sun. That means you’ll be doing your part to reduce carbon emissions and keep our air, water, and plants thriving for generations to come.
In Conclusion
Are you looking for solar panel installation companies in your area? Perhaps you have questions about solar installation costs? Contact LGCY Power at (855) 569-0097 today and one of our solar experts can help you find the information you need to make an informed decision about a solar panel installation for your home.
