Tax Credits for Energy Efficiency

Does anyone know of any grants, tax credits, or deductions offered to multi-family owners that update the energy efficiency of the building?

Here in Raleigh the City had a rebate program on the cost for installing water saving devices. In effect it was a grant because they rebated about 80% of the cost for these devices. Maybe check with your local city,county website

I've briefly checked with the city and county but they are both extremely broke and doing budget cuts this year. Thanks for the input!

Check here:
www.dsireusa.org/
liheap.ncat.org/links.htm

Remember that pots of money come and go, so be persistent. One week they might not have money available and a week or a month later they've received another block grant.

Also, if you don't see anything that pertains to your situation, then call your utility company and talk to them. Go up the ladder, if you have to. My understanding is they, generally speaking, are under mandate to do deals.

Good luck and keep all of us posted on your progress. Great to hear you're becoming energy efficient.
Kim Madrigal
GreenLandlady on Twitter
www.greenlandlady.com

Correct me if I am wrong; but if there are rebates/tax credits available, wouldn't they be from the utility provider?

I remember hearing something about this being sponsored by the federal government under the stimulus package????? All the local government may need to do is submit the request for funding.

If you find any resource for this, can I ask that you post it here to share???

Have you checked www.desireusa.org ? This is the national database for rebates, etc.

What specific types of rebates and/or tax credits are you looking for? Appliance upgrades, lighting, low flow water fixtures, solar. . .?

The correct website is www.dsireusa.org/

There are all sorts programs available but really depends on what, where, and how you are doing the projects. While there certainly are some good funding programs out there, unfortunately, they are limited or it is difficult to get funding for many of the things you really should or want to do - especially when you are a for profit organization. And, very generally, funding is usually made available for projects that don't have the paybacks necessary for organizations to "want" to invest in. If the economics/payback were good then usually organization will fund. So, this means that many of the grants and other funds are for projects that are not going to yield you great results or projects that shouldn't be taking priority if you feel you have room to improve your energy/utility costs. Just because assistance is available doesn't mean you should take it. That said, there certainly are some good programs. Check the websites given in the replies, with state and local government and also with your utility company. I have found that utility incentive programs are much better and easier than government programs.

Let the government assist you with your tenant retention plan! Try offering tenant's up for lease renewals a new refrigerator, using government rebates that will not only lower your capital outlay, but also reduce your resident's utility bills. Dishwashers are another good bet for rebates and who wouldn't want a new energy and water efficient d/w? A new Energy Star diswasher will reduce electricity and water bills!

Here's a fun calculator for old refrigerators. Remember only input the first 6-8 numbers and/or letters of the model number:
www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?fuseaction=refrig.calculator

Most residents want to be green, help them and you help yourself. While residents care about the dollars and cents (now more than ever), they also seem to care about their carbon footprint. Using appliances, lights, low-flow fixtures and aerators, you help your residents save the world. You help them be heroes!

Here is the national database for utility cos. www.dsireusa.org
Here is the DOE's Energy Star rebate site:
www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?fuseaction=rebate.rebate_locator

There is a new player in town, called ecorebates, a site that seeks to aggregate these incentive programs. Good luck to them:
ecorebates.com/

The breadth and depth of incentive programs differs depending on where in the country your properties are located. For example, Boulder, CO is offering energy efficiency loans tied to the property and sold with the property that can be used to upgrade multifamily structures:
www.beclimatesmart.com/

Of course not every community is as forward thinking as Boulder's, but even a simple lighting upgrade has less than a two-year payback. You're absolutely right in pointing out that the capital markets are making it difficult to upgrade multifamily in a big way. But don't let the best be the enemy of the better.