Del Webb, a division of PulteGroup, Inc., and SolarCity, a provider of clean energy, announced on July 12th, 2013, that homes in the Del Webb Orlando and Del Webb Stone Creek active adult communities in Florida will include a pre-installed 2 kilowatt (KW) solar system for a limited time. This system will save more than $300 to the homebuyers on their electricity bills every year. Del Webb’s agreement with SolarCity allows homebuyers to pay less for clean electricity generated by their individual home’s solar system, than the current utility rates.
Del Webb will include the 2 kW solar system as a temporary incentive with an option for the homebuyer to upgrade up to an 8 kW system depending on the design and style of the home. The savings for each homebuyer will vary based on their level of personal electricity use and the size of their individual solar system. New homebuyers can choose from 13 different home designs at the Del Webb Orlando community and from 17 at the Del Webb Stone Creek community in Ocala.
“Boomers are more environmentally conscious than previous generations. As more boomers start to retire, they are choosing Del Webb homes which are packed with energy efficiency features and now a solar system that will save them hundreds of dollars on their utility bills for years,” said Sean Strickler, vice president of Sales, North Florida Del Webb. “We partnered with SolarCity because they handle the whole process of adding solar to a new home which gives our homebuyers the chance to save money and benefit from their new solar powered homes with peace of mind.”
Del Webb is a leading builder of new homes targeted to pre-retirement and retiring boomers, and was ranked among the ‘Best Places to Retire in the U.S.’ In addition to the financial savings, Del Webb homebuyers get the satisfaction of knowing that their choice of living in a solar-powered home reduces their individual carbon footprint. Every standard 2 kW system at a Del Webb home in Florida is equivalent to reducing more than 95,000 pounds of carbon-dioxide (CO2) emissions over the lifetime of the agreement.* The total impact of each standard 2 kW solar system at Del Webb homes in Florida over the next 20 years would equate to planting more than 2080 trees, or eliminating the use of more than 1795 common propane cylinders used in home barbeque grills.*
SolarCity custom designs and installs each solar system at Del Webb communities before the homebuyer moves into their new home, and will provide customer service, continuous monitoring and take care of any repairs ever needed for the lifetime of the contract. SolarCity also provides a personalized MySolarCity web portal to each homebuyer giving them direct access to view their electricity consumption and their solar system energy production online.
* Calculations are based on agreement terms of 20 years and based on data from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and American Forests.