There’s a big new solar tax credit in town.
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Costs will continue to drop
The cost of solar has been falling for a long time.
Theaverage cost of a rooftop solar systemnow hovers around $25,000.
“You’ve really seen, across the board in the last decade, costs coming down.
And that’s really enabled solar to flourish,” Rumery said.
He expects that trend to continue, despite some temporary flattening of solar prices due to supply chain disruptions.
A big reason why solar prices could continue to drop is significant development in the solar industry at large.
“That generally will benefit consumers.”
This will likely translate to cost savings for consumers.
Solar is not immune to that, and it’s causing some modest cost increases for the residential market.
“We need supply chains to improve,” Rumery said.
And despite strong support of solar from the federal government, state-level policies remain something of a patchwork.
“The market is heavily influenced by state policy,” Rumery said.
But in states where that sort of policy is lacking, he said that affordability and adoption will lag.
Energy storage will take off
Solar panels are one expensive thing.
Homeowners are increasingly adding a big battery to their solar installations.
The same 30% federal tax credit that’s available for solar can also cover a home battery installation.
“We are seeing that pairing, because quite frankly, it just makes sense,” Frank said.
One powerful way to make solar more affordable is partnering with your neighbors.
“People that do solar, they become sort of evangelical about it,” Frank said.
They might be able to answer your questions orpoint you to a reputable solar installer.
Your neighborhood could also become a source of further federal solar discounts.
“The [solar] industry is really trying to make inroads to low- and moderate-income communities.
And I think that’s something we need to continue to do,” Rumery said.
How much do solar panels cost in my state?
These prices don’t take take tax credits or state incentives into account.
Some states don’t have any FindEnergy solar data and are grayed out on the map.
After all,solar only accounts for 5%of US energy production.
But Rumery sees a not-too-distant future where that changes.
It’s going to be, ‘Can you afford not to go solar?'"
“This is as good a time as any,” she said.
