Thought solar panels were a scam until my neighbor's bill showed up

My neighbor across the street in Buffalo put them on his roof last spring and just showed me his electric bill from January - he owed $12 while mine was $214. Has anyone else had that moment where you realize you were wrong about something climate related?

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daniel_lane302mo ago

That quote "he owed $12 while mine was $214" really hits different when you see it in plain numbers like that. I heard a podcast where they broke down how the cost of solar panels dropped like 80% in the last ten years, so it's not just for rich people anymore. Sounds like your neighbor might be onto something unless he secretly works for the power company or something.

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claire_ramirez2mo ago

Ngl the 80% drop stat is right but it's been more like 50-60% over the last decade depending on where you live and what kind of panels you're looking at. Solar's definitely more affordable now though, like a basic system for a small house can run you $10k-$15k before tax credits. Honestly the bigger issue is that not everyone has the cash upfront or good enough credit for a loan, even if the long term savings are solid. But yeah your neighbor probably isn't scamming you just because he's got savings on his bill.

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