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Jeff Arbour – MI

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January 22, 2025

Michigan homeowners like Jeff Arbour are accessing the financial and environmental benefits of solar energy thanks to the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA).

Jeff’s solar story began at the Presbyterian Church of Okemos Green Team; he led the congregation’s effort to install a solar array in 2023. The experience opened his eyes to his own home’s solar potential and the federal incentives that could help make a residential installation more affordable.

In 2022, the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) increased and extended the solar Investment Tax Credit (ITC), which allows homeowners to deduct 30% of a solar system’s cost from their federal income taxes. Backed by this incentive, Jeff installed a 4.4-kilowatt (kW) array in 2023. Through the ITC he saved $4,200, lowering the projected payback time by six years.

The system offsets 54% of Jeff’s energy use, translating to approximately $600 in annual savings. He’s now grateful to be powering his home with renewable energy—and for how easy it is to do. “We’re really happy with it … the fact that there is just no real maintenance—nothing you do; it’s just always working and producing without any effort,” he shared.

Jeff drives a plug-in hybrid which he charges with the energy produced by his solar array. “I plug it in and it’s just all free electricity,” he said. “It is satisfying to me to be able to … recharge the van knowing that I am not touching the consumer energy grid at all.”

Thanks to the IRA, homeowners like Jeff now face fewer obstacles to accessing the benefits of distributed renewable energy. By going solar, he has aligned his energy use with his environmental values and saved on his monthly expenses in the process.