Attention Charlotte County, Port Charlotte, and Punta Gorda home and business owners: PACE financing is available for funding your solar panel installations!
PACE stands for Property Assessed Clean Energy, and it is a financing mechanism that allows you to finance energy efficiency projects with no money down. The payments are made through your property tax via a non-ad valorem assessment. You can get long term financing up to 25 years at attractive interest rates regardless of your credit. The program has some equity requirements, but generally speaking the financing decision is based on your property and not your individual credit.
The program applies to solar electricity, solar pool heating, and solar water heating purchases, and can also be used for energy improvements like variable speed pool pumps. The program is not taxpayer funded, and it is not a subsidy or incentive. Participating communities are simply making financing available with the help of third-party administrators, and managing the payment process through property taxes. This provides security for lenders, resulting in lower interest rates. Since there is no personal credit requirement, payments can easily transfer to home buyers or can be paid off at any time with no prepayment penalties.
If you live in Charlotte County, FL and are interested in financing a solar panel system through PACE, contact us today!
Here is a video from E|Vest Florida, the administrator for the PACE program.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9tZYxvs8GBo
Once sign up for the Pace Program can you pay the loan off anytime?
Yes. PACE loans can be paid off at any time.
Do you know if Pace financing will be available in Cape Coral anytime soon? Any idea who I should contact to express my interest in the program?
Excellent question. This was addressed in recent years, but the initiative was tabled for future discussion. The entity that you would want to contact is the Lee County Board of County Commissioners. Cape Coral is either District 1 or 4 depending on where you live. As far as I know, it has not been discussed again recently. I would love for PACE to come to Lee County.
You might also consider contacting the Southwest Florida Regional Planning Council, an early PACE advocate.