Leasing the sun

There are a few catches, though. The main one is that, unless you’re a resident of California or Arizona, leasing isn’t available in your state right now. Solar City plans to expand its program to five more states next year, but the candidates haven’t yet been announced.

Another option pursued by homeowners with neighbors also interested in solar energy is collective bargaining. That’s how Paul and Ursula Davidson of San Rafael got their solar unit two years ago.

In fact, credit goes to Max, who created GoSolarMarin, one of the largest of such neighborhood programs, in the fall of 2007. So far, 185 households have signed up, with another 25 under contract but whose units haven’t been installed.

“We did it for both ecological and economical reasons and for the value of the house,” says Dr. Davidson, a retired rheumatologist, explaining why they installed solar technology.

He and his wife have owned their home since 1965. Without any rebates, the cost of their 2.1 kilowatt system would have been $17,000. Thanks to the lower price negotiated by GoSolarMarin, a California state rebate, and $2,000 back from the federal government, the unit cost “about $11,000,” says Davidson.

Their electric bills are now 50 percent lower – about $850 a year, instead of $1,700 – and he and his wife say they are both pleased with the program. “It’s quiet – you’d never know it was there. There’s no downside,” says Davidson.

Still, the recession has slowed the pace of GoSolarMarin, says Max.

And despite its advantages, the idea of collective bargaining in already established neighborhoods “really hasn’t taken hold,” except in Marin County, says Harris.
Since 2006, for example, Solar City has set up about 30 neighborhood solar programs – most recently in Los Angeles in July. They have about 800 households involved in the community pricing program, but twice that number signed up for a solar lease.

Where homeowners can expect to see a real difference in collective pricing is “when new construction takes off again,” says Harris. “It won’t be optional. [The builder] will have negotiated a great price with everybody.”

Other experts agree. “The top 10 home builders are each producing above 20,000 homes – that’s ramping up economies of scale,” says Andrew McCoy, assistant professor in the department of building construction at the College of Architecture and Urban Design at Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, who took a team to the Solar Decathlon this month.

The real change will come when solar technology becomes one of the standard options that developers offer, says Professor McCoy. “When you start getting into that kind of volume, that could really turn the tide.”

“I’m very encouraged by that segment,” says Harris, citing 3,000- and 4,000-home developments in Texas that are planned to be built with solar units included in the next three years. “That’s something that would make solar more adoptable around the US.”

Editor’s note: For more articles about the environment, see the Monitor’s main environment page, which offers information on many environment topics. Also, check out our Bright Green blog archive and our RSS feed.

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