Palm Desert PACE Financing
Congratulations, Palm Desert-ites! You live in a city that supports property tax solar financing.
How does Palm Desert’s municipal solar financing program work?
In a nutshell, the city’s program allows property owners—residential or commercial—to pay for solar panels through property tax bills over a 20-year period. The loans carry a fixed interest rate and stay with the house—so if you move, the next tenant continues to pay for the loan through property taxes. That means you don’t have to worry about paying for panels on a house that you don’t live in anymore. The city also provides loans for a number of other energy efficiency improvements, including pool pumps, ventilation systems, window films, and natural gas fuel cells.
That sounds great! How is Palm Desert able to do this?
Palm Desert’s solar program is made possible thanks to California’s AB811 law, which allows loan programs to pay back investments in renewable energy systems through property tax payments. $7 million in city funds have been allocated to buy bonds and $5 million have closed so far.
Is the solar financing program available now?
Palm Desert’s Energy Independence Program was launched in August 2008 and has already committed over $7,500,000 for energy efficiency and solar upgrades. So yes, the financing program is available now.
How do I get involved?
The Energy Independence Program loan application is available here. Just fill out the form and send it to the City of Palm Desert Office of Energy Management via e-mail, fax or snail mail. For more information, check out this PDF and the city’s AB811 website.