Get Paid (by the Fed) To Save Energy at Home

As winter approaches and the thought of a $500+ heating bill frightens you, saving energy really starts to become a concern for everyone. This year, the US Government has really stepped it up a notch and is offering a lot of incentives to weatherize your home, replace outdated appliances and make home improvements that help with energy efficiency. Many of these incentives are packed into different programs that were part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, also known as the stimulus package, which was passed in February, 2009.

Increasing your home’s efficiency and saving some money doesn’t have to be difficult. Last night, Bill and I ordered some new weather stripping for the windows in our condo and a new set of air filters for our furnace. (If you can wait a few days for delivery, buy this stuff from Amazon.com instead of your local home improvement store like Home Depot or Lowe’s, I saved over $30 and got free shipping!). Simple improvemnts like this may even qualify you for government assistance (AKA: Tax Breaks), check out the EERE website to see if you qualify for the Weatherization Assistance Program.

If you own an older home and you are staring at an avocado green refrigerator and you can feel the air leaking through the windows and doors, now may be a great time to think about taking energy savings to the next level. Right now, there are a slew of tax credits, rebates, etc. to help encourage you to spend your money in the market and make your home and the appliances in it, more energy efficient. If you are looking to go completely green with solar panels, tank-less hot water heaters, etc., the existing tax credit that covers up to 30% of the cost (including installation) has been extended in most cases to 2016.

For more details on the different rebates available, I highly recommend you check out this article from This Old House, it provides a wealth of knowledge.

(Photo courtesy of purpleslog)