At a Glance
A great way of deciding whether to buy a solar system is to view it as a long-term investment. We find that return on investment for Home and Energy solar systems is around 20 – 45% annually for residential systems and 25 – 50% annually for commercial systems. This is calculated by adding the amount saved by not having to pay for electricity plus the credit received from the electricity retailer for solar exports into the grid.
For households that have high energy use, we find their ROI tends towards the higher end as savings at 24 – 28 cents per kWh for electricity consumption are worth more than Feed-in Tariff exports at 17 cents per kWh.
With good quality equipment, you can expect your system to last for 20 – 25 years. Maintenance during this time includes at least one inverter replacement and a basic panel clean every few years.
Sizing your solar system correctly, choosing equipment which offers the best balance between quality and cost and including an upgrade to your hot water system (if electric) are important factors in achieving the best possible ROI.
An investment example*
As an example of a minimal 20% ROI, an $8,000 system paid for using a green loan at 6.26% interest over 5 years (total cost including loan repayments $9,332) could provide you with around $1,870 yearly in savings and credits. Note that this is an average and indicative figure, taking manufacturers’ specified panel degradation and one inverter replacement into account. Most of our clients achieve a higher ROI than this (around 30% is common for our residential customers).
*Figures are indicative only and were accurate at the time of publishing 11/05/2020.
With good quality equipment, you can expect your system to last for 20 – 25 years. Maintenance during this time includes at least one inverter replacement and a basic panel clean every few years.
Home and Energy’s preferred inverter brands offer warranties of 5 – 12 years, with options to purchase significant warranty extensions.
All of our preferred solar panel brands offer performance warranties of 25 years, which allow no more than 20% degradation or loss of performance (in some cases less) over 25 years.
As the STC quantity a new solar system is eligible for decreases each calendar year, there tends to be a rush in the last quarter. The increased demand for new solar contracts increases the Energex wait time for approval and can leave solar companies fully booked. So it’s important to not leave your solar until the last minute if you would like to get the best possible incentive value.
This makes it an excellent time to investigate solar for your home or business right now. Below is a table showing some examples of STC values and how they will decrease if you wait another 1-2 years to install your solar system. Please see our STC Incentive page for more information.
Take advantage of our knowledge and experience so you can make an informed choice on size, quality, government incentives and optimal solar feed-in rates.
Ask us to show you real time solar monitoring for installations in Noosa and educate you on how solar can pay off for you.
Home and Energy are an established and trusted local solar company, dedicated to outstanding customer care for the Sunshine Coast community.