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Joined: 12/6/2004
From: LAS VEGAS TAKE A CHANCE
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I don't have any personal experience with it but was relaying what neighborhood people are relaying.
One lady said:
The quote we got for a 4KW system to buy, not lease was $34,500 less a 30% Tax Credit of 10,500 (only good if you have a tax liability, and has to be amortized out over (I think it was) 3 years.) leaving a balance of $24,500. The hitch in this was they require all of your major appliances to be up to date. Refrig, A/C, Pool Pump etc - if they are not they would be happy to sell you all new ones for a price. I'd forgotten about that part :) If I were building a new house from the ground up, I'd have solar right from the get go. - Oh, I wanted to add.... Nevada was / is still contemplating doing what Florida did. That is once the solar system is installed adding the 35K as a home upgrade and up the house and land value on our property tax. Just like if you add a pool or jacuzzi or any other home upgrade.
Another person said:
Chad echoes our exact thoughts on the few solar companies we have had over. Some are for lease, usually for 30 years, and if you sell your house it must be paid in full. Some of them you buy outright, that are supposed to be "better* than the panels in the for lease units. It all got into some real fuzzy math. The neighbor behind me had the lease units installed a year ago - but NVEnergy never got out to make the conversions they needed to make them operable for 11 months. Said neighbor now wishes he had not done it at his age. Solar is great - retrofitting with an uncooperative Power company is near impossible - and navigating through the large number of companies installing them to find a reputable one is a chore. Make sure if you do go foreword you make them put a completion date on the formal paperwork.
Summerlin put in the one across the street from us, but I'm not sure it's operative yet. It was operating until we had that big storm a few months back, and something blew up... I don't know the details as they are not talkative.
Ener-Tech is one that you buy and it sounded great - we went through 2 presentations, and the price kept going up and up and up. Then we told him we wanted to read through and think on everything and the Rep got extremely rude in one of those polite ways. Never the less a big package arrived in the mail a week later wanting us to sign all sorts of loan papers. Took us a bit to get them away from us and to stop calling.
And here's another:
We contacted SolarCity for a bid. They are now blocked on my cell phone as the calls never ended. After some research, two things I can share, be sure you are staying where you are for many years if you lease (which I am not) and don't lease. 😀
The rebate program may be coming to an end soon from what I understand and it seems that the technology still needs to come down in price. It's about a $25K investment.
There are diverse opinions out there and prices. I wish it was a cut and dry thing like you said. But at least here in Neveda there seems to be a lot of information to wade through to get to the facts.
And finally this guy who seems to know what he is talking ABOUT:
I am well qualified to help out here. I have a 12.11 kW PV solar system installed on my house. I'm also a civil engineer by trade, so I understand the mechanics and technology behind it very well. I met with several contractors before settling with Summerlin Energy. They are fair and do good work. What I can tell you about other contractors such as Solar City (especially bad) and others, is that ABSOLUTELY DO NOT do a lease/buy to lease program with them. Pay for your system outright for it to be a worthwhile investment. Additionally this also allows you to keep your own generated portfolio energy credits (PECs) that you can trade with NV Energy or on the open market. They act like a stock certificate for green energy. If you do rebates you will forever give up your rights to these credits which may increase in value in the future. An additional benefit, there is NO property tax increase value on your house if solar is installed.
I'm a numbers guy being an engineer. You should pay roughly around $3.50-$3.75 per DC watt installed. If you are paying more than that, you are being ripped off, simple as that. Purchasing the gear yourself will run you $1.50 per DC watt, so the rest is made up in labor, permits, etc. The actual payoff when paying $3.50-$3.75 per DC watt is approximately 9 years no matter how you slice and dice it (Includes 30% tax credit, value of PEC credits, and credits of energy generation). That payoff time essentially comes down to the efficiency of the panels on a south facing sun exposure. Estimates of 7 years or less are lies (unless you get an extremely cheap install or do it yourself).
rONDABRWN, YOU DON'T KNOW HOW MUCH I WOULD LIKE TO BE OFF THE GRID AND SELF-SUFFICIENT. That's why I hope it becomes more economically feasible. But really, i'm speaking for future generations because at 63 I don't think I can get the money back before I kick the bucket. Also I don't have that kind of money unless I sell my home. But then I wouldn't need a solar system. 
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