CAI-NJ Jan. 2019 (w)

How to Lower Your Energy Costs By Kari Valentine, CMCA, AMS,

Associa Mid-Atlantic, AAMC and Stephen Michella, CEO, Distributed Resource Ventures (DRV)

E very association board member and manager strug- gles during budget time. Often board members are unrealistically pushing to either maintain or lower the maintenance fees while keeping services the same. But it’s simple economics that dictates whether you will increase the fees to manage your community to the best it can be or to lower the services. You accomplish the latter by either by changing vendors or by minimizing services, thereby reducing the quality and value of your association. In today’s world, it takes creative thinking coupled with current knowledge to assist in keeping fees manageable for the current residents while preserving the association’s value marketable. Something that is making its way into HOAs and Condos is community-wide solar systems. Communities with large clubhouses see a significant value when they participate in a solar program. These programs help off-set the asso- ciation’s energy costs. It’s like free money. The aesthetics of solar panels have come a long way over the last few years, which had likely inhibited HOAs and Condos from considering this energy alternative in the past. Many communities are great candidates to install a solar energy system (or multiple systems) to offset the electricity costs for common areas. Individual condo owners can coordinate installations which would provide both purchasing power and maintain consistent association aesthetics. Properly designed, installed, maintained, and financed solar energy systems can • provide members immediate and future utility bill sav- ings, • mitigate exposure to rising power prices, • increase the value of individual homes within a commu- nity, in particular, and • further the desirability of the community, as it is likely to be viewed by prospective buyers as having a ‘hedge’ in place on future rising utility rates.

© iStockphoto.com © iStockphoto.com

(above) Old solar and (below) new solar.

Distributed Solar Within Common-Interest Developments The Foundation for a Modern, Sustainable Community — Introduction Solar energy is the fastest growing new energy source in the U.S., used by everyone from utilities to factories to homeowners to produce reliable and inexpensive elec- tricity. What seemed like a ‘green dream’ to most people just ten years ago, is an economic reality today, as solar energy can be the most cost-effective form of new power generation in many parts of the country.

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