Should I Go Solar Now or Wait?By: Austin Brentley   |  10/19/15

At Direct Energy Solar, this is one of the most common questions we run across.Does it make more sense to install photovoltaic (PV) panels today, or are you better off delaying your purchase for a bit?On the surface, waiting appears to make a lot of sense.Solar panel prices keep falling every year. According to some estimates, PV costs have decreased nearly 80% since 2008 alone. So by putting off your solar investment, you’ll likely receive a cheaper installation. You might also benefit from higher quality panels as the technology continues to improve.You’ve probably faced similar scenarios when shopping for computers or cars. Prices go down. Quality goes up. And sometimes, it really does pay to wait.However, solar works a little differently.By delaying your decision to install PV panels, you often end up paying more—quite a lot more.Let’s discover why that is.Expiring Solar Incentives

Across the country, solar incentives disappear all the time—both at the local and national levels.For example:

The federal solar investment tax credit is scheduled to expire at the end of 2016.

California no longer offers solar rebates. And the state’s highly successful net metering programprobably won’t see another year.

Without these types of incentives, you’ll spend way more on the upfront cost of your PV installation. And if you miss out on programs like net metering or the feed-in tariff, you won’t be able to monetize the clean sunshine that hits your rooftop.By delaying your solar investment, you can expect:

Higher installation costs

Longer payback periods

Lower solar returns

But there’s another reason why delaying your solar purchase costs more.Interim Utility BillsWhile waiting to go solar, you still need to keep your lights on and appliances running. This means sending payments to your power company, month after month, year after year.In some months, those bills can be obscenely expensive. This is especially true in the summer when your AC unit

is working at full capacity. The irony is that all of that summer sunshine is free energy that could keep your home cool if you had solar panels installed.Think of it this way.Let’s say that you spend about $100 a month for grid electricity. Every year that you delay going solar means that your eventual installation ends up costing you an additional $1,200.This is money you could use to go solar today. You’d start saving money right now.Equally important, installing solar panels also helps to make your community (and planet) that much cleaner. The sooner you go solar, the sooner you can reduce your carbon footprint.What Are You Waiting for? Go Solar Today!If you delay installing panels you’ll spend more, make less, and contribute to global pollution.Waiting does NOT pay.Go solar today and start reaping the environmental and financial benefits of clean sunshine right away.To request your free Direct Energy Solar quote today, click here.