The good news is that two new energy conservation programs could make going "green" a lot easier for many Boulder County homeowners.

The bad news is that participating in either program could add a new wrinkle to the process of selling the homes. Though the issues certainly will be minor in most cases, homeowners should consider them before jumping into either program.

Boulder County Commissioners recently launched the first scheme.  "ClimateSmart" is an excellent program under which the county loans homeowners and businesses money to improve the energy efficiency of existing residential dwellings and business structures. 

The County gets the money by selling low-interest bonds. Participants pay back the loans through special property tax assessments collected over a number of years.  If the house sells during the payback period, the new owners must pay remaining special assessments under the terms of the original loans. Click here for more information about ClimateSmart.

The second program comes from SunRun, a California company that recently expanded its solar power program into Colorado. According to the company, the program offers "affordable home solar power" to participants.

Essentially, SunRun installs a solar system on homes, then charges homeowners for electricity thus generated.

"With SunRun, homeowners pay as little as $1,000 for a one-time system installation fee, and then pay a low, monthly bill to have solar energy at home," the company said in a press release issued earlier this month. Click here for the SunRun website.

SunRun charges nothing to transfer its agreement to a new homeowner, but, if a buyer objects to the agreement or the system itself, the current owner may have to pay the remainder of the 18- to 20-year contract or purchase the system before selling the home.

In most cases, new homeowners will be comfortable paying for ClimateSmart improvements or SunRun costs.  If these programs live up to expectations, financial benefits should sufficiently offset costs.

However, by participating in these programs, current homeowners are making financial decisions for future homeowners.  While many potential buyers will see energy improvements in a positive light, a few may object.

Current homeowners should be prepared.  At the very least, current owners should produce accurate figures comparing the ongoing costs of improvements and  the resulting savings in traditional energy fees. 

Hopefully, the figures will demonstrate a net financial gain. But even a small negative cash flow from the improvements should help mitigate concerns of environmentally aware buyers, which, in this day and age, includes most people.


Ron Rovtar is an agent at Prudential Real Estate of the Rockies in Boulder CO.  He is Ecobroker Certified® and can be reached at 303.473.1926.