PACE (Property Assessed Clean Energy)

What is PACE and how does it work?

PACE is a long term, fixed rate source of financing that allows homeowners to do energy conservation and hurricane hardening improvements to their property. Property owners can use PACE financing to cover 100% of the costs involved in installing eligible projects, including all related equipment, materials and labor. Eligible improvements include energy efficiency, water conservation, renewable energy generation, and resiliency upgrades. A few examples include: air conditioners, roofs, windows/doors, water heaters, solar panels, pool heaters, hurricane shutters, and generators.

Property owners pay back the financing for PACE improvements through a special (non-ad valorem) assessment that is added to their property tax bill each year. Property owners repay the special assessment for an agreed upon term (usually the useful life of the improvements) and the interest rates are fixed. There are no adjustments to interest rates and no balloon payments.

PACE assessments can be prepaid at any time and do not have any prepayment fees. Because the assessment is attached to the property, rather than the owner of the property, if the property owner sells the property before the assessment is paid off, the balance of the assessment remains with the property. The assessment can transfer to the new owner without any need to approve the purchaser of the property.

PACE, therefore, makes it easy for property owners to make improvements to their home by eliminating upfront cash payments, providing competitive interest rates spread out over time, and allowing property owners to transfer repayment obligations to a new owner upon sale.