How To Decypher The Solar Panel Purchasing Market

Those panels are blooming all over the ground and rooftop.  Have you seen an increase in the shiny black grids on a lot of the roofs over the past few years? Your optics aren’t deceiving you, the number of houses with solar panels grew by 1000% over the recent years.  

The Department Of Energy Chimes In On Solar Costs

The intelligent folks over at The Department of Energy anticipates that trend to continue and predicts that one million homes will have solar panels by 2020. Why such substantial growth so fast? It was all in recognition of a significant decline in solar prices over the last few years. 

Solar costs plummeted recently when the Chinese government directed the worldwide solar market by throwing low-cost solar financing into the sector which increased solar panel manufacturing further than ten-fold over the last couple of years.

Considering the high volumes of solar panels on the market, costs plummeted, falling from $2.79 per watt into $1.59 per watt. That was bad headlines for competing solar panel manufacturers, but excellent news for customers who benefitted from low prices.

Of course, the prices of solar panels express only one part of you pay when you go solar. There also are also “soft costs” to consider. 

NREL Solar Costs

In a world of declining solar panel costs, soft solar panel costs now compose the majority of what you pay when you install solar on your house. Fortunately, as numerous people adopt solar power, soft costs have dropped. As a result, this is a trend that is expected to continue. An examination by the federal government’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) determined that installed prices have plunged on average an annual rate of 13% to 18% per year since 2009. And while slumps in panel prices have leveled out, soft costs proceed to drop. NREL transcribes that from 2013 to 2014, non-panel expenses have slipped 10% year over year.
Want to save and be guided by experts? Go to HahaSmart.com and try our price checker tool. It tells you how much solar power you need and how much you can save on your energy bills each month.
Please visit our solar blog to find out more about the benefits of going solar.