CT Solar Lease Program to Reopen for New Applications?

After disappointing news that energy legislation supporting PV incentives in Connecticut wasn’t moving forward, I am very happy to report some optimistic news in the state for solar programs.  The CT Solar Lease Program may be accepting new applications subject to CT Clean Energy Fund (CCEF) Board approval.  The board is expected to meet in late July so stay tuned for more details.  Rebates are reported to be lower than the current lease program; however, the economics remain powerful and will offer homeowners the opportunity to make a smart energy investment.

A CT Solar Lease allows homeowners with moderate incomes the ability to add solar energy to their homes at no upfront cost and see the savings almost immediately.   The lease program’s investors will own the solar system, but the system would be installed on a resident’s roof.  The CT Solar Lease program will be able to lease it at an affordable rate because they will take advantage of the state’s solar rebates and federal tax credit.

A CT Solar Lease does have an income requirement based on the town, number of people in the household and household income. To qualify, a family household income must be 200% or less of the area’s median income and meet debt to income qualifications. The program requires no down payment and has been designed to provide homeowners with the lowest fixed monthly payment for 15 years.  At the end of the 15 year term, you can decide to buy the system at the current depreciated value, extend the lease for another 5 years at a significantly reduced rate, or have the system removed at your own expense with no future obligation.

The CT Solar Lease program is one of the earliest, if not the first, residential leasing programs in the United States, launching before Solar City and SunRun.   Solar City and SunRun offer what is more commonly called a Power Purchase Agreement where they purchase, install, and maintain the solar panels on a resident’s behalf.  The CT Solar Lease program will not maintain the solar installations. However, they will aggregate and sell the Renewable Energy Credits (RECs) which are generated by these systems.  The proceeds can be used by residents for maintenance of the solar installations including inverter replacement and out of warranty repairs.

In my opinion, this is a really innovative financing arrangement that allows solar installations to be accessible to a wider range of Connecticut residents.  Just to give you an idea of what a solar lease would look like: An average system is about 5 KW and would cost less than a $120 per month.  This is a locked in price over the next 15 years!  In the last 5 to 10 years, the price of electricity has risen by an average of 7 to 11% in Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island.   This is a great opportunity for Connecticut homeowners to take advantage of solar incentives.  I will make sure to report the outcome after the upcoming Connecticut Clean Energy Fund board meeting in late July.

45 thoughts on “CT Solar Lease Program to Reopen for New Applications?”

  1. Pingback: Tweets that mention CT Solar Lease Program to Reopen for New Applications? — BRIGHTSTAR SOLAR -- Topsy.com

  2. Dear Brightstar Solar,

    Great post! We’re trying to help raise the awareness around these great solar benefits in New England as well. If there is anything we can do to help you, please let us know!

    All the best,

    Matt Shaffer
    http://ct.energynewsboard.com/

    P.S. – Totally love your choice in blog theme/design – Cheers! 🙂

  3. Interested in putting solar panels on my house to save on electric bills which average 400 a month.

  4. I have been exploring for a bit for any high quality articles or weblog posts in this kind of house . Exploring in Yahoo I at last stumbled upon this web site. Reading this info So i¦m glad to exhibit that I’ve a very good uncanny feeling I came upon just what I needed. I so much without a doubt will make certain to don¦t disregard this web site and provides it a glance on a continuing basis.

  5. Do you mind if I quote a few of your posts as long as I provide credit and sources back to your site? My website is in the exact same niche as yours and my visitors would really benefit from some of the information you present here. Please let me know if this ok with you. Thanks a lot!

  6. Hello there! I know this is kind of off topic but I was wondering which blog platform are you using for this website? I’m getting sick and tired of WordPress because I’ve had issues with hackers and I’m looking at options for another platform. I would be great if you could point me in the direction of a good platform.

  7. Do you have a spam problem on this site; I also am a blogger, and I was curious about your situation; many of us have developed some nice practices and we are looking to trade solutions with other folks, please shoot me an email if interested.

  8. I conceive this site has some really great information for everyone. “The foundation of every state is the education of its youth.” by Diogenes.

  9. Hey There. I found your blog using msn. This is a really well written article. I’ll make sure to bookmark it and return to read more of your useful information. Thanks for the post. I will definitely return.

  10. I’ve read some good stuff here. Definitely worth bookmarking for revisiting. I wonder how much effort you put to create such a excellent informative web site.

  11. I am really loving the theme/design of your weblog. Do you ever run into any web browser compatibility problems? A couple of my blog audience have complained about my website not working correctly in Explorer but looks great in Opera. Do you have any solutions to help fix this problem?

  12. Woah! I’m really enjoying the template/theme of this blog. It’s simple, yet effective. A lot of times it’s tough to get that “perfect balance” between superb usability and visual appeal. I must say you’ve done a very good job with this. In addition, the blog loads very quick for me on Firefox. Excellent Blog!

  13. Thanks a lot for providing individuals with an exceptionally brilliant chance to read critical reviews from this website. It really is so pleasurable and also jam-packed with a lot of fun for me and my office co-workers to visit your website a minimum of 3 times per week to find out the newest things you have. And lastly, I’m also actually motivated with the very good knowledge you give. Certain 3 facts in this post are surely the most suitable we’ve ever had.

  14. I?¦ll right away snatch your rss feed as I can’t find your e-mail subscription link or e-newsletter service. Do you have any? Kindly allow me understand in order that I may just subscribe. Thanks.

  15. You actually make it seem so easy along with your presentation but I to find this topic to be actually one thing which I believe I’d never understand. It kind of feels too complex and very vast for me. I’m having a look ahead on your subsequent put up, I¦ll try to get the dangle of it!

  16. Have you ever considered creating an e-book or guest authoring on other websites? I have a blog based on the same subjects you discuss and would really like to have you share some stories/information. I know my audience would appreciate your work. If you’re even remotely interested, feel free to send me an e mail.

  17. Thanx for the effort, keep up the good work Great work, I am going to start a small Blog Engine course work using your site I hope you enjoy blogging with the popular BlogEngine.net.Thethoughts you express are really awesome. Hope you will right some more posts.

  18. I’m not sure where you are getting your info, but good topic. I needs to spend some time learning much more or understanding more. Thanks for excellent information I was looking for this info for my mission.

  19. This is very fascinating, You are an overly skilled blogger. I have joined your feed and look forward to searching for more of your great post. Also, I’ve shared your site in my social networks!

  20. I feel that is among the most important information for me. And i am glad reading your article. But want to statement on few general things, The web site style is great, the articles is really nice : D. Just right process, cheers

  21. I simply could not go away your site prior to suggesting that I actually loved the standard info a person provide in your guests? Is gonna be back regularly in order to check out new posts.

  22. I’m not sure why but this site is loading extremely slow for me. Is anyone else having this problem or is it a issue on my end? I’ll check back later and see if the problem still exists.

  23. Simply wanna remark on few general things, The website design and style is perfect, the written content is very good. “If a man does his best, what else is there” by George Smith Patton, Jr..

  24. Whats up very cool website!! Guy .. Excellent .. Superb .. I’ll bookmark your site and take the feeds alsoKI am happy to seek out a lot of useful information right here within the put up, we’d like work out more techniques in this regard, thank you for sharing. . . . . .

  25. Hello there, I discovered your blog by the use of Google whilst looking for a related topic, your website came up, it seems to be great. I’ve bookmarked it in my google bookmarks.

  26. Nice post. I used to be checking constantly this weblog and I’m inspired! Extremely useful info specially the ultimate section 🙂 I deal with such information much. I used to be seeking this particular info for a long time. Thank you and good luck.

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Scroll to Top