Why Buying a New Home is the Perfect Time to Talk Battery Storage

Buying a new home can be one of the most exciting times in your life.

Your new investment means new neighbours to meet, new walls to paint and new furniture to style your house, creating a home to love for years to come.

This time can also be a little daunting. You’ve signed up for a loan, and you’re aware of the costs, but how much will your new investment cost you in ongoing maintenance and energy usage in the years to come? A home energy storage system should be the first thing on your list to investigate.

Investing in a battery storage system can reduce the running costs of your home for years to come.

Home energy storage is an investment that you’ll see returns on as soon as installation is complete. Combining solar energy generation with battery storage allows you to use clean, green, renewable energy 24 hours a day, instead of more costly coal or gas-fired power from the grid. You’ll be protected from electricity retailers hiking up prices, could have power in a blackout, and you’ll help the environment in the process.

But aren’t upfront costs huge?

The upfront costs might look scary, but this is an investment that you can rely on to start paying itself back almost immediately. A brand new solar and battery storage package could cost as much as renovating your kitchen or doing up the bathroom; it’s a major investment. However, costly renovations only prove their worth if you decide to sell years down the track. Home energy storage, on the other hand, starts paying you back as soon as installation is complete, through money saved on your electricity bills each month. Not only does home energy storage save you money on your bills, but with the right system it can also protect you from unpredictable power outages, which can last for hours or even days.

Having power in a blackout is infinitely worth the short-term costs of installation.

Choosing a reputable home energy storage provider means you’ll have complete clarity in what you’re signing up for, including if your system includes power supply in a blackout. While you might expect that every battery storage system should provide power in a blackout, this isn’t necessarily the case. Even if you do choose a system that offers blackout power, the amount of energy they can supply varies between brands and providers. It’s important to work with a reputable energy company that can guide you through your options and tell you upfront what you can expect from the system you’ve chosen. Choose a quality system that provides the blackout power that you need to remain comfortable in a summer heatwave outage, and keep warm in a winter storm. You could be one of the few households in your neighbourhood able to offer solace from the heat or cold when the lights go out around you.

Smart financial decisions made early can mean big savings in the future.

From a financial point of view, installing a battery storage system when you first purchase your new home is one of the smartest things you can do. Financing your new solar and battery storage solution can be as easy as adding the upfront installation cost to your home loan. It’s often one of the smartest and simplest form of finance; interest rates are generally lower than personal loans and consumer finance, your credit risk has already been assessed and you have already built a solid relationship with your lender.

By talking to your home loan provider at the time of your new home purchase, you can avoid extra hassle years later and take advantage of a low home loan interest rate from the very start.

Andrew and Clare – New Home Buyers Example

Andrew and Clare have just signed off on the purchase of their new home. They have signed on to a 25 year home loan with an interest rate of five percent. It’s an exciting time for the couple, and they’re looking forward to changing their investment into a warm and inviting home.

Before they get too excited, they agree to do some homework on how much their new home will cost them in upkeep in the long-term. Andrew does some research into energy costs, discovering the price of electricity in their area has risen considerably just in the past 12 months, with more increases to come. Paired with the upcoming summer and higher energy usage all-round, he’s keen on making sure their energy costs are manageable for the future.

The couple discuss their options, and they consider installing a solar and battery storage system in their new home to avoid rising electricity costs in the future. Andrew speaks to the team at ZEN Energy and finds out that they could add a complete solar and energy storage solution to their home for approximately $20,000. Their consultant at ZEN Energy estimates it could make them 80 percent grid independent, saving them up to $3000 per year in electricity costs. The savings look great, but Andrew just can’t get past the $20,000 figure: the upfront cost seems too high to manage.

Hearing this, Clare looks into whether they could finance this investment by adding the upfront cost to their home loan. She works out, with the help of their lender, that by adding $20,000 to their home loan, they would only be adding about $120 per month to their repayment schedule – less than $1500 per year.

This means, with an additional $1500 per year added to their home loan repayments, they would still be saving $1500 on total running costs every year just by adding a solar and battery storage solution to their home. That’s a home investment that actually leaves them with more cash in their pocket every year. If their home loan rate is reduced, or the cost of grid electricity goes up, their benefits only get better. When electricity retailers increase usage charges, Clare and Andrew can celebrate: their investment is paying off even faster.

Of course, everyone’s circumstances are different. We recommend getting tailored financial advice from your accountant or a registered advisor prior to making any decision concerning the use of credit to purchase your ZEN Energy solution.^1,2,3