- Insulation: $15 rebate for every $100 spent insulating your home.
- Compact fluorescent lighting: Rebates are included in the purchase price if the PG&E logo appears on the box.
City of Oakland’s Energy Retrofit Loan Program (ERLP)
The City of Oakland’s ERLP offers 0% interest deferred loans of up to $30,000 to low- to moderate-income homeowners for weatherization and energy retrofits of owner-occupied single family homes in Oakland. The loans require no periodic payments and are repaid upon sale of the home or title transfer. Income eligibility is determined by HUD guidelines. The ERLP loan can be combined with a variety of residential rehabilitation loans and grants from the City to address emergency home repairs, lead paint remediation, seismic retrofits, etc. The total contract amount for one home may be upwards of $100,000.
FEDERAL TAX CREDITS:
Installation costs ARE COVERED for:
- HVAC (Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning) systems
- Biomass Stoves
- Water Heaters (including solar)
- Solar Panels
- Geothermal Heat Pumps
- Wind Energy Systems
- Fuel Cells
The tax credit for HVAC, biomass stoves, and non-solar water heaters is 30% of the total cost (product + installation) up to $1,500. The law specifies installation costs include: “expenditures for labor costs properly allocable to the onsite preparation, assembly, or original installation of the property.”
The tax credit for solar water heaters, solar panels, geothermal heat pumps, wind energy systems, and fuel cells* is 30% of the total cost (product + installation), with no upper limit. The law specifies installation costs include: “labor costs properly allocable to the onsite preparation, assembly, or original installation of the property and for piping or wiring to interconnect such property to the home.”
Installation costs are NOT covered by the tax credit for:
- Windows
- Doors
- Insulation
- Roofs
The tax credit for windows, doors, insulation and roofs is for 30% of the cost of materials, up to $1,500.
Windows note: Beginning June 1, 2009, to qualify for the tax credit, windows (and doors and skylights) must have a U-factor and Solar Heat Gain Coefficient (SHGC) less than or equal to 0.30. This is a super efficient window, and most ENERGY STAR windows will not qualify.
$1,500 total for both years: The $1,500* tax credit is a total combined credit for all tax years (2009 & 2010). So, basically you can spend up to $5,000 during this 2 year period on a single or multiple improvements, and get 30% or $1,500* back as a tax credit. If you get the entire $1,500 credit in 2009, then you can’t get anything additional in 2010.
However, if you were to both file separately, you could both claim the $1,500, as long as you are both claiming separate expenses. For example, you could spend $5,000 on windows and get the $1,500 tax credit (30% of $5,000 = $1,500), and your partner could spend $5,000 on a new HVAC system and get $1,500 back for that.
If you don’t pay any taxes, then you can’t get the credit.
Window Film: Certain window films – if purchased in 2009 or 2010 – are able to qualify for the tax credit if the manufacturer certifies that, similar to insulation, the window film meets the statutory criteria. If the specific window film satisfies the requirements of a “qualifying insulation system,” and the manufacturer certifies the product as meeting those requirements, the product is eligible for the tax credit of 30% of the cost of the window film, up to $1,500.