When choosing to go solar, you have two options – to own or to lease? There are advantages and disadvantages to both.
Owning Your System
Owning your solar array allows you to make decisions on the size and location of your array, but it also allows you to take advantage of all of the incentives that come with the solar array. These incentives include
- One for One Net-Metering: Excess kWh credits produced more than what’s needed to power your home are used monthly to offset power delivered to your house. The monthly carryover then continues month after month.
- 30% Federal Investment Tax Credit (ITC): A tax credit is a dollar-for-dollar reduction in the income taxes that a person or company claiming the credit would otherwise pay the federal government. The Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 extended the ITC to 30% until 2033.
- Illinois Solar Renewable Energy Credits (SRECs): The State of Illinois offers the Illinois Shines Program, or also known as Solar Renewable Energy Credits (SREC), which is a program that helps expedite the return on investment when going solar. SRECs can potentially cover from 30-50% of the total system cost.
- Increase in home value
To verify what incentives apply to you, be sure to contact your tax preparer or accountant when deciding to go solar. If you’re an ag or business owner, there are even more incentives that could apply to you. Upfront costs are higher for owning your solar array, but ROI (taking into account incentives) can be reflected in almost two to five years.
Leasing Your System through a Power Purchase Agreement (PPA)
Leasing your solar array allows for a smaller initial investment. The leasee is entered into a lease agreement for a set number of years and is charged for the energy at a set rate by the leasing company. Leasing companies receive all of the incentives and are the owners of the array. If you are still involved in a lease agreement and you want to sell your home, you must arrange for a lease transfer to the next owner.
If you are interested in owning your solar array or would like more information, contact us today. Stateline Solar customers own their systems & all of the incentives that comes with going solar!