At Mosaic, our vision of 100% clean energy for all led us to build an industry-leading platform for home solar financing – and now we’re going beyond that to connect homeowners with financing for modern, energy-efficient home improvements. That combination of solar and energy efficiency is also at the heart of what the Department of Energy calls “Zero Energy Buildings,”, defined as “an energy-efficient building where, on a source energy basis, the actual annual delivered energy is less than or equal to the on-site renewable exported energy.”
Whether you prefer to look at the glass as 100% full (of clean energy) or 100% empty (of fossil fuel energy), this potent idea is attracting a lot of interest these days. According to Net Zero Energy Coalition data, there are over 6,000 homes in the US and Canada that are either net zero or “net zero ready”– defined as homes that have lowered their energy consumption to the point where a solar installation could meet 90 percent (or more) of their energy needs.
You don’t have to design and build a 100% energy-efficient home from scratch, either – the non-profit Zero Energy Project has some great case studies of beautiful, energy-smart renovations to existing homes that have put their owners on the road to zero energy status.
Financing Solar and Other Energy-Efficient Home Improvements
Mosaic is working to accelerate this trend by connecting homeowners with simple, fast loan financing for solar panels and other energy-efficient home improvements like roofs, doors, windows, and HVAC installs – upgrades that can be key to reaching that 100% clean energy goal. As with going solar, eliminating or reducing the up-front cash expense of home improvement upgrades with a loan through Mosaic can be the catalyst that makes these investments in your home an easy decision.
We’ve helped finance over $2 billion in home solar installations through our highly qualified solar installer partners, and we’re applying the same model to connect you with home improvement loans through our awesome pro contractor partners. The home improvement loans these contractors can offer through Mosaic’s mobile point-of-sale app feature:
- A streamlined, easy-to-understand process
- Instant credit decisions
- A range of loan terms (up to 20 years for solar and 12 years for home improvements)
- Online payment portal
- No prepayment penalties
A 100% Case Study In Progress
While loans through Mosaic feature instant credit decisions, the process of actually turning a house into a home is a journey that can take months or even years – and that includes the journey to reach 100% clean energy. There are all kinds of home improvements you can make to upgrade the comfort as well as energy-efficiency of your home, but if you’ve got good contractors to work with and some patience you can get there.
We’re big believers in walking the walk at Mosaic, and Barrett Miles, one of our team members in the northeast, recently began his own 100% clean energy journey – you can read his story here. With the help of our contractor partner ReVision Energy, financing through Mosaic, and rebates from the state and his local utility, he’s on his way to turning a drafty, heating oil-dependent New Hampshire house into a 100% clean energy home. The steps he’s taken (or planning to take) include, in order:
- LED lightbulbs to reduce electricity use for lighting
- Air sealing and insulation work to reduce heat lost in the winter
- Replacement of his oil-fired water heater with an efficient electric heat pump water heater
- Solar panels on his roof
- Replacement of his oil-fired boiler with electric heat pumps for space heating
Nearly one year after beginning his journey, he’s completed the first 4 steps, and he and his fiancee are already enjoying the benefits of a cozy, energy-efficient home — more consistent hot water availability, and lower heating and electricity bills. And once that oil-fired boiler is replaced, he’ll have a fossil fuel free home – and save an estimated $2,000 a year in energy costs!
100% Partners
Barrett’s journey is exactly the kind of whole home upgrade project we envisioned when we began building a platform for energy-efficient home improvement projects. We’re excited to help many, many more homeowners chart their own course towards modern, 100% clean energy homes – but we can only do it with the help of our growing network of contractor partners.
If you’re a home improvement contractor, the ability to offer access to easy, on-the-spot loan financing options for your customers can give your business a real competitive advantage.