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On Bill Recovery and Smart Energy Loan 3.49%

November 22, 2014

Primary Approval Standards:
Customers who meet the following underwriting criteria** may be approved through the primary approval process:

FICO credit score of 640*
Debt-to-Income Ratio less than 50%
No bankruptcies, foreclosures, or repossessions in the past seven years
Outstanding collections, judgments, liens, and charge-offs may not exceed $2,500

*Customers who are self-employed and have been in business for two or more years must have a FICO score of 680 or higher. Customers who are self-employed and have been in business for less than two years must have a FICO score of 720 or higher.

Alternate Approval Standards:
Customers who are not approved through the primary approval process may still qualify for a loan if they meet the following criteria**:

Mortgage has been paid on-time for the past 12 months
Electric and gas accounts have been current for two consecutive months during each of the past two years and no payments more than 60 days past due during this time period -OR- electric and gas accounts have been current for nine of the past 12 months and no payments more than 60 days past-due during this time period.
No mortgage payments more than 60 days late during the past 24 months.
Oil/propane accounts must be current and must have been established for at least 24 months.
Debt-to-Income Ratio up to 55% – OR – up to 70% if FICO score is 680 or higher – OR – up to 100% of applicants who qualify for Assisted Home Performance with ENERGY STAR
No bankruptcies, foreclosures, or repossessions in the past five years
Outstanding collections, judgments, liens, and charge-offs may not exceed $2,500

Please note that this list does not constitute a comprehensive list of loan underwriting guidelines.

[Source: Energy Finance Solutions ]

Solar Is Secured for Our Future

October 2, 2014

New York City will spend $23 million to install solar-paneled roofs on 24 public schools, Mayor Bill de Blasio said.

The installations will triple the amount of sun power currently gathered on city-owned buildings, the mayor said today at a news briefing. The total investment will be about $28 million, with $5 million coming from state grants under Governor Andrew Cuomo’s NY-Sun Initiative.

Standing outside John F. Kennedy High School in the Bronx, one of the first schools to rely on solar energy to power its classrooms, de Blasio told reporters that the shift to renewable energy isn’t only a way to support new technology and save money, but a “moral imperative” as well.

“It’s the right thing to do for our children and grandchildren,” de Blasio said, noting that the panels will generate 6.25 megawatts of power. “With the help of our partners at the state government, we’re one step closer today to handing off a planet that will be a safe place for future generations.”

The announcement comes about a week after New York City became the largest municipality to commit to a goal of reducing greenhouse emissions from public and private buildings 80 percent by 2050 from 2005 levels. De Blasio, 53, a self-described progressive Democrat, was elected last year by the biggest margin by a non-incumbent in city history.

10-Year Goal

De Blasio set a goal of developing 100 megawatts of solar power on public buildings and 250 megawatts on private properties in 10 years. That would generate 1 percent of the city’s electricity, reducing greenhouse-gas emissions by an estimated 35,000 metric tons a year, he said. If private targets aren’t met, de Blasio said he would prod building owners to invest in solar power through incentives and mandates.

At JFK High School, the panel installations will coincide with an environmental curriculum that will allow students to track in real time the amount of energy the system generates and the impact it has on emission reduction.

The panels, which generate energy even in overcast conditions, can help during natural disasters like Hurricane Sandy. The 2012 storm knocked out power for more than 2 million New York households, according to a report from the U.S. Commerce Department.

Energy Efficient Loan Program

September 19, 2014

The On-Bill Recovery Loan is a way to obtain loans for energy efficiency improvements through the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) and to repay these through a charge on the customer’s electric bill. On-Bill Recovery makes it easy to pay for home energy improvements without paying cash up front.
The PSEGLI program was recently launched (August 2014).

Here’s what the program entails:

No down-payment required
Loans under 15 years will qualify for $25,000
Loans over 15 years will qualify for $13,000
Loan terms can range from 5-15 years
Low-interest rates – 3.49% for terms of 5, 10 and 15 years (subject to change)
Convenient – no separate bill to pay. The loan repayments will appear as a loan installment line item charge on your PSEGLI bill
Repay from the money you save on energy
If you sell your home you will have the option to transfer the unpaid balance of the loan to the new owners
The customer must have good credit and pay their PSEGLI bills on time each month

The On-Bill Recovery program will have unlimited funding through New York’s Green Bank Program. Interest rates will be between 2.99 and 3.50% depending on market conditions. NYSERDA administers the program and provides the capital. The utility, in this case, PSEGLI, does the billing and collection of loan payments from the homeowner. If the customer has non-payment issues during the course of the loan the customer will be billed separately until the utility service direct payments are re-established. Your repayment amount will be based on projected savings on your energy bills.

In order to qualify for the loan, the new monthly payment for the loan cannot be more than the current monthly electric bill the customer pays now. Example = New Monthly Electric Bill + Monthly Loan Payment must be less than the current monthly electric bill. So as a general rule, customers with the higher electric bill should have an easier time qualifying than those with very low electric bills. The loan will be designed so that projected energy savings equal or exceed payments.

In order to make this work in some cases, you may have to use Same as Cash Loans or short term loans or customer cash payments. This would be for higher priced jobs or higher priced modules in some cases.

For full eligibility requirements and instructions on how to apply for the On-Bill Recovery loan, visit Energy Finance Solutions or call (800) 361-5663.