El Paso is a fantastic city, home to some incredible art, people, food, and nature. Situated along the border of Texas and Mexico, it provides a perfect mix of culture and opportunity for its residents. Nicknamed “the Sun City”, it should be no surprise that with the fantastic Texas heat, El Paso is the perfect city to invest in solar energy panels!

Everything is bigger in Texas. It seems that this saying even applies to the sun’s rays, with El Paso experiencing almost 300 days of sun every single year. This climate is a strong opportunity for you to experience the incredible benefits of solar energy. More and more residents are taking advantage of the current incentives and opportunities, and installing solar panels onto their roofs every year. 

Before we start, here is the Solar Report Card for El Paso:

There are a lot of questions surrounding solar energy, which is why we felt it was so important to put together and discuss this information. We walk through the most common topics, looking at the impactful benefits, affordable cost factors, current incentives available, financing options, savings, and even your possible return on investment!

Reasons to Go Solar

Everyone has a different reason when they begin looking at switching to solar energy. We will walk through the largest benefits available as a resident interested in a solar panel installation, these include cost savings, environmental impact, and energy independence. 

You Can Save Money!

Electricity bills fluctuate across the United States and even in local residential areas. A reliance on external providers means that someone else is deciding the price you will pay for the very energy that you need to run your home. Solar energy is an investment into your life, in the way that it can greatly reduce the money that you are spending year over year. Later in this guide we will break down the incredible savings available to you as a resident of El Paso!

Renewable Energy Helps the Environment!

It’s no secret that renewable energy lifts a burden off of the production and burning of traditional fossil fuels. Natural resources are limited and with growing energy reliance, we will continue to see these resources impacted. Solar energy offers an alternative source that is completely renewable. As more and more people realize the benefits of solar, we are removing even more toxins from the air of our cities, and specifically our communities!

You Enjoy Energy Independence!

When we talked about the benefit of saving money, we touched on the fact that traditional energy keeps you dependent on an outside source. While this can result in increasing and ever-fluctuating energy prices, it also means you are also impacted by the reliability of an outside party. High winds, maintenance, lightning strikes, falling branches, or any number of reasons can suddenly leave your home without power. Solar energy puts that power into your hands. By controlling the energy coming into your home, your home gains independence from external factors and keeps your life moving!

Solar Panel Cost in El Paso, TX

So we have laid out the largest of the benefits, touching on the bill savings, environmental help, and even energy independence. Now that you know in general what you have to gain, you might be wondering what solar power is going to cost as a resident of El Paso. In order to make things as simple as possible, take a look at this infographic on the average prices of solar systems in your area:

The average-sized solar system is a 5 kW (kilowatt) panel system. This will provide the necessary power for you to operate an average-sized home. For the sake of keeping things consistent, we will use this size. As displayed in the graphic, your estimated cost would be $14,550. 

Keep in mind that this price varies depending on the solar installer that you choose to go with, so we strongly recommend that you get a quote from several different contractors. Also, know that this total cost is represented without any incentives or rebates. Let’s take a look at those now and see how much you can save!

Solar Incentives in El Paso, TX

Now is as good a time as any to make the switch to solar energy. This is due to the limited time potentially available on incentives offered that are being currently offered. So if you are interested in solar, definitely check out the opportunities that could save you even more money on your total installation. 

Federal Solar Tax Credit

The Federal Solar Tax Credit is going to be the largest savings incentive available to you as an El Paso resident. This incentive offers a whopping 26% credit back on your total purchase of a solar panel system. It’s important to know that while this credit has been extended until 2023, there is no guarantee that it will be extended again. Already in prior years, we have seen the credit drop from 30% in 2019. This means that if you are looking to maximize your savings, it’s important you begin to look into taking advantage of this credit as soon as possible!

When we look at 26% back on the installation of a $14,550 solar panel system, you are looking at a return of $3,783! The Federal Solar Tax Credit alone can reduce your total cost, then, to $10,767. This is extremely impressive savings to take advantage of the incredible benefits of solar. 

Solar Property Tax Exemption

The state of Texas offers a wonderful opportunity to save you money on the addition of solar panels to your home. It does this through a property tax exemption on all solar-related upgrades. This means that as the value of your home goes up by an expected 4% (we will look further into this in a little bit) you are exempt from paying additional property taxes on that value!

El Paso Financing 

If you are looking at the current cost and thinking to yourself, “this sounds great, but I don’t have $10,767 on me.” Don’t worry, you’re not alone. At Solar Action Alliance, it’s our recommendation for resident solar purchasers to look into the available financing options in your area. Another option you may come across is something called a Power Purchase Agreement. However, we don’t recommend this, simply for two reasons: first, it won’t add to your home; and second, it will reduce the saving potential of switching to solar energy. 

Banks and other solar company manufacturers (who often have agreements with installers) can likely provide you with either a secured or unsecured solar loan. A secured loan, which can give you a lower interest rate, will require collateral like your home (due to this, you can usually gain approval with a lower credit score). An unsecured loan (dependent on a higher credit score) will not require any collateral but will come at the cost of a higher interest rate. 

El Paso Solar Energy Savings

Now we get into the fun part. You’ve purchased your installation and made the switch to solar. How much can solar really save you? Let’s look at the prices in El Paso and how much savings are in store for you!

A 5 kW system (capable of powering your average-sized home in El, Paso) generates an estimated 6,750 kWh (kiloWatt hours, which is how we measure electricity usage) per year. In El Paso, the current price of electricity is about 11.11 cents per kWh. We multiply these two numbers (6,750 X $0.11) to find that the cost of electricity we are now independently producing comes to $742.50.

Now that you are powering your home from solar, you are looking at a yearly energy bill savings of $742!

We estimate that the life of your solar panels should be about 30 years. This means that the savings you gain from going solar will be able to pay off your total system in 14.5 years! Leaving the remaining 15.5 years for you to freely pocket all those savings. It’s also important to note that this doesn’t even take into account the ever-rising cost of electricity. So as rates go up, so does your saving potential! 

Return on Investment 

Solar energy is more than just an opportunity to save some money: it’s an actual investment! Furthermore, it’s safe to say that solar energy panels are one of the best risk-free investments you could make as a resident in El Paso. Let us show you why.

As we mentioned before, your savings will allow you to pay off your entire system in 14.5 years. This means that the (potentially rising) $742 that you save for the remaining 15.5 years is profit in your pocket. If we multiply these savings out, we are looking at $11,501!

Remember how we briefly mentioned that solar panels could add 4% to your home value (property tax-free)? Well if we take 4% of the median value of homes in the city of El Paso, which is currently about $200,000, we would be adding a value of $8,000. 

Adding the $11,501 in savings pocketed with the $8,000 in increased home value, you would be looking at a return on investment of $19,501! In investing terms, this is an ROI of 180%! This is why we say that installing solar panels onto your home is one of the best risk-free investments that you can make right now. Add that value with all the benefits discussed and it’s pretty easy to see why so many people are switching to solar energy for their home. 

How to Find a Quality Solar Company in El Paso, TX

At Solar Action Alliance, we are proud to help people across the United States determine whether solar energy is a good choice for their homes. It’s our belief that the benefits of solar energy go far beyond just helping the environment, that this renewable energy can also be a remarkable, highly-efficient investment for you as a homeowner 

However, we don’t stop at providing information. We also want to enable you as an El Paso resident to make the transition and free yourself from reliance on traditional energy services by thoroughly vetting and forming relationships with El Paso solar installers. We make sure to find solar installers that offer a reasonable price, quality service, and the highest tech and latest model panels and systems. 

It’s important that you find someone you trust for the installation of your solar panels because it’s a large purchase with an incredible impact. If you’re ready to get started today, or if you’re just looking to receive a few quotes or numbers of trusted companies in the El Paso area, just enter your zipcode below to get started: