Abstract
This chapter provides a solution to the split incentive between tenants and landlords currently preventing rooftop solar adoption in the Single-Family Rental (SFR) home market. The Renter’s Power Purchase Agreement (RPPA), which incorporates PPAs into rental agreements and enables property owners to sell electricity to their tenants. After providing a background on the growth of the solar industry and the institutionalization of the SFR market, the strengths of the RPPA compared to the traditional third-party leasing model—it removes the need for expensive tax equity, reduces borrowing costs, and eliminates most sales costs—are presented. The chapter closes with a discussion of the conditions under which the RPPA might be most lucrative at present: neighborhoods in sunny states with strong Net Energy Metering (NEM) policies, above average electricity prices, and concentrated institutional SFR ownership.
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Heller, R. (2019). Financing Rooftop Solar for Single-Family Rental Properties. In: Walker, T., Krosinsky, C., Hasan, L.N., Kibsey, S.D. (eds) Sustainable Real Estate. Palgrave Studies in Sustainable Business In Association with Future Earth. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-94565-1_12
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