Energy Improvement Financing

Pod April 2, 2019

The City of Redlands, in participation with the California Enterprise Development Authority (CEDA), the California Statewide Communities Development Authority (CSCDA) and their affiliated financing partners, is offering commercial and residential property owners multiple programs for financing energy upgrades and improvements.

These Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) Programs provide up-front capital to fund material and labor costs for permanently installed improvements such as high-efficiency lighting, heating and air conditioning, windows, reflective roofing, solar panels, electric vehicle charging stations and more.

The programs are similar in the way they are structured, but offer distinctive financing packages (e.g., interest rates, application fees). Property owners are encouraged to review all programs and select the one that best fits their specific requirements.

Commercial Property Programs

CounterPointeSRE
CounterPointeSRE provides up to 30 year financing for energy retrofits including solar, LED lighting, HVAC or other energy saving installments or equipment to enhance your property and improve your building’s value.

Renew Financial
Renew Financial allows commercial property owners to finance energy efficiency, renewable energy and water efficiency improvements for their businesses and multifamily residential projects. The financing is then repaid on property taxes over the course of up to 20 years.

Dividend Finance
Dividend Finance provides financing for HVAC, solar, cool roofing, lighting and more. Long term, fixed, low interest financing makes it cost effective and easy to upgrade your property, while preserving your capital for other projects.

GoGreen Financing
Program backed by the State of California.

Residential Property Programs

Home Energy Rebate programs
Programs offered through the State of California.

GoGreen Financing
Program backed by the State of California.

Renew Financial
With Renew Financial, you receive funding for energy efficiency, renewable energy, and water efficiency improvements and repay the financed amount on your property tax bill over the course of up to 25 years.

Home Run Financing
Home Run Financing is a leading energy efficiency financing program in the United States. Home Run Financing, Pace funding makes energy efficient, water efficient, renewable energy products and seismic upgrade projects more affordable for homeowners.

Federal Tax Credit

For information about potential federal tax credits, please click on the links below.

The State of California does not offer a state or local tax credit at this time.

PACE Financing

Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) programs provide a unique type of financing that allows homeowners to finance energy efficient, water saving, and other environmentally beneficial improvements through their property taxes. But financing home improvements through PACE programs can involve risks, which the homeowner should be fully aware of.

PACE is not a free government program. Property owners must pay for a PACE contract through increased assessments in their annual property tax bills. As such, PACE assessments become a lien placed on the property until the PACE contract is paid off.

More information is available from the California Department of Financial Protection & Innovation:

Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE): What Homeowners Need to Know

Self-Generation (SGIP)

The Self-Generation Incentive Program (SGIP) offers rebates for installing energy storage technology at both residential and non-residential facilities. These storage technologies include battery storage systems that can function during a power outage.

Depending on the battery and how much you are using it, batteries can provide power for several hours, or longer. Battery storage can be an important component of a more robust emergency preparedness plan in the event of a power outage.

In preparation for the next wildfire season, the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) has authorized funding of more than $1 billion through 2024 for SGIP. This funding includes prioritization of communities living in high fire-threat areas, communities that have experienced two or more utility Public Safety Power Shut-off (PSPS) events, as well as low income and medically vulnerable customers. The funds are also available for “critical facilities” that support community resilience in the event of a PSPS or wildfire.

The best way to get started in accessing SGIP is to reach out to an installer who can help navigate the application process. Use the “Find an Installer” Tool to help find an installer in your area. (Please note that the CPUC does not endorse or recommend any of these installers.)

Additionally, the Golden State Financing Authority is offering a financial assistance product for SGIP. For more information, please visit: https://gsfahome.org

Helpful Resources

Eligibility for Program

Customers must meet various criteria in order to be eligible for SGIP rebates. Please check the Brochures and Fact Sheets above for detailed information about eligibility.

There are two categories of new, higher rebates for SGIP – “Equity” and “Equity Resiliency”. Both categories aim to ensure lower-income, medically vulnerable, and at-risk for fire communities are at the front of the line to receive competitive incentives for battery storage.

The “Equity” and “Equity Resiliency” SGIP rebates lower the cost of energy storage technology to almost, if not completely, free of cost. Depending on which category a customer is eligible for, they can receive $850 per kilowatt hour under the “Equity” Category or $1,000 per kilowatt-hour under the “Equity Resilience” Category. Both of these amounts would mean an energy storage system for the home or facility would be almost, to potentially completely, free of cost.

For additional information on eligibility pathways for the Equity Resiliency budget you can also review the eligibility matrices for Residential and Non-Residential customers.

December 2020 update: The Equity budget statewide is currently exhausted and operating on a waitlist, with the exception of SoCal Gas and SCE in the residential category.

For more information and current updates, please visit the CPUC website at:
Participating in Self-Generation Incentive Program (SGIP) (ca.gov)