Our city can take pride in being recognized as a pioneer in sustainable development. For many years there have been programs, incentives and initiatives that encourage building developers, businesses and residents to reduce their carbon footprint by using less energy to power and heat their properties.
Over the years, Seattle’s Benchmarking, Tune-Ups and Oil Furnace Conversion programs have successfully helped to reduce emissions. The city’s Priority Green Expedited, Living Building Pilot and Green Up initiatives have helped to increase green development by expediting permits, offering increased building space and providing funds or credits for projects that meet energy-efficiency thresholds.
While many programs are aimed at new construction projects and upgrades to existing commercial and multi-family structures, there are green initiatives that the city, county and federal government target to homeowners. It’s a chance for everyday people to do their part – in a big way – to lower energy demand and ultimately save money.
It only makes sense to improve high-energy consumption in a property: to boost energy efficiency, reduce utility bills, protect us from rising utility costs, lower maintenance bills and enjoy a healthier clean-energy home.
Arguably the biggest statement that a homeowner (and commercial property owner) can make is to use solar energy to produce electricity, heat water or do both. Solar electric systems convert sunlight directly into electricity to power the home. Solar hot water systems use the sun’s warmth to preheat water before it enters a conventional water heater.
Or course, with any new addition to a home, there are permitting requirements to ensure the solar system is up to code as well as engineered and designed for safe installation and long-term use. The city offers specific guidance (a must read) on when a permit is required. In all cases, a homeowner must obtain an electrical permit from the city and a plumbing permit when installing a solar hot water system. Permit fees run about $300 each. It’s best to work with a licensed and bonded contractor of these systems to determine whether a building permit is required.
You may also need a city permit to remove portions of a tree that would block the sun from reaching solar panels. Details regarding tree regulations on private property can be found here.
Panels are typically installed on the side of a gabled roof or above a flat rooftop. If you are unsure about the structural integrity of your roof, or if it needs repairs, have the structure professionally inspected. And, if you install elevated solar panels, covered usable space may be created that could be classified as an additional story.
Prices to purchase and install solar systems are now at their lowest levels with an average-size home system costing about $18,000, down from about $40,000 in 2010. The costs depend on the size of the house and energy needs.
Washington is 30th nationally with more than 19,000 homes using solar systems, producing about 1% of the state’s electricity. (Historically, California has led the way in home-solar systems.) Growth in solar is expected to continue here, particularly as prices fall – by some 32% in the past five years – and combined solar and energy-storage systems become valuable.
There are also financial incentives and long-term monetary benefits to using solar energy. Property owners that install them are eligible for a federal tax credit of 26% of the system cost (materials, labor, freight shipping and permits) in 2020 and 22% in 2021. A tax advisor can guide you through which IRS form(s) to use. (Homeowners do not qualify for the credit if leasing solar equipment.)
Solar electrical systems are also eligible for a partial reduction or exemption from state sales taxes, depending on the system’s size and year of installation. The state also provides financial incentives for electricity generated from renewable energy resources.
The beauty, too, is that if your system produces more electricity than needed, the “overflow” will supply the city’s electric grid and actually spin your utility meter backwards – a perfectly legal process called “net metering.” According to Mental Floss, the average solar customer saves about $20,000 over 20 years and adds uncalculated value to the home.
Four in 10 Realtors ® surveyed nationally in 2019 said they believed homes with solar panels increased the perceived property value. Additionally, 59% of Realtors’ ® clients were interested in sustainability. Millennials – the most active segment of home buyers, especially in our area – have expressed a strong interest in green living. They are interested in knowing whether the marketed home includes solar panels, indoor air purification systems and tankless water heaters.
We are among the leaders nationally in green energy alternatives. Many of the state’s programs got their start in Seattle/King County and are now adopted in other North American cities. An analysis of the Seattle Energy Code found city buildings are, on average, 11% more efficient than those following national standards.
The trademarked name “Built Green” got its start here. In addition, we are home to the world’s most efficient commercial office building – the Bullitt Center, on the northern edge of the Central District.
The Smith Tower, the iconic white structure that has stood tall in Pioneer Square since 1914, recently earned its LEED certification. And Seattle’s Fire Station 9 in Fremont is now LEED Silver status.
And there are new green residential buildings coming online, too. Inspire is a 42-unit, small-efficiency apartment in the southern edge of Wallingford that opened in autumn 2019 with a promise to deliver 105% (net positive) energy, thanks in part to its roof-top solar array and high-efficiency heating/cooling system. Each unit even comes with an energy-efficient, flat-screen TV.
Inspire is the city’s first multi-family dwelling that adheres to Living Building standards and actually provides solar energy to its neighbors. Also in line for Living Building status is a 15-story, 112-unit apartment in Belltown that will be powered exclusively by solar panels – a project that has yet to begin.
Elsewhere, construction is underway on an apartment building in Lower Queen Anne and a condo in Pike/Pine that will deliver a combined 111 units that meet Passive House Institute standards for energy-saving features in insulation and conservation. Construction on such buildings can yield energy savings of up to 80%.
The programs for renewable energy, adoption rates among homeowners and the new, green construction projects are gaining strength – not to mention energy!