Financial Planning with your Energy Advisor

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Energy efficiency has been all over the news lately, but among the headlines, this line made us sit up and take notice:

“Energy efficiency investments can have returns so handsome they will rival those of successful criminal enterprises.”

Wait…WHAT did he just say??

That’s either the worst message our industry could be associated with – or the best. It comes from Vermont energy expert Hilton Dier of Renewable Energy Design, who makes a great case for energy efficiency as a financial planning tool. Dier goes on to explain the fuel savings as tax-free income scenario:

“It doesn’t matter whether you earn $100 on an investment or save $100 on your electric bill. In both cases, you are $100 ahead of where you were otherwise. There is one crucial difference: The advantage of saving $100 on your electric or heating bill is that it is tax-free. You’re $100 ahead and you don’t even have to report it to the IRS.”

And next year you’ll earn that $100 again – probably more, since the price of energy tends to rise up faster than inflation.

We spend a lot of time making the case for energy efficiency based on comfort and safety. After all, air sealing and insulating your home will keep you warmer in the winter and cooler in the summer. Encapsulating your wet basement will improve your indoor air quality and reduce asthma and other respiratory problems. Home performance would be a very good idea even if it never saved you a dime.

But it does. Your return on investment will likely be higher than anything you can get from bonds and safer than anything else you can get in the stock market. From a financial perspective, home performance would be a very good idea even if it didn’t improve your comfort or your health.

So:

Comfort – check.
Health & Safety – check.
Money Management – check.

Now, that’s a headline!

Contact us today to learn more!

207-594-2244

I never leave reviews, but had a great experience with Evergreen and wanted to spread the word! In short, we worked with them to insulate our roof this winter and have noticed surprising immediate results. The constant ice dams I have wrestled with are completely gone, and the home is noticeably more comfortable. It's a little too early to tell if our oil bill is going to reduce, but I imagine we will see an impact there as well.

Joel W.

Portland

Greetings one and all! I am writing to express my gratitude to all involved in my insulation project. From start to finish, I appreciate the universal theme which was maintained by each and every one of you, to ensure that my home was insulated and protected from freezing pipes as if it was your home. Andrea, thanks for helping me navigate my way to the project. Nate, thanks for the thorough initial assessment and the time you took to explain this project to me, step by step. Brian, thanks for setting up my project - so happy

Michele

We had Evergreen redo the insulation in our roof. The team handling our project did a great job. They left the house spotless. We've already noticed the difference in how much better our house is retaining heat. I would definitely recommend and will use them for future projects.

Ffej C.

South Portland

I would recommend Evergreen wholeheartedly because of their professionalism, their follow through, and thoughtful project planning.

Jennifer A

Evergreen has a professional and reliable team of people who do excellent work. If you want the best of the best in the area, select Evergreen to accomplish your insulation needs.

Mary E.

St. George

In the final stages of selling our home, and with a closing date set, an inspection came across an unanticipated issue in our attic. We quickly called in contractors, but nobody was able to identify the source of the problem. Then we thought of Evergreen. Brian Robinson was on site the next morning and immediately identified the source (a faulty roofing job completed three years earlier which had effectively sealed up portions of the ridge vent and restricted air flow - not easily visible with a quick inspection).

Robin McIntosh

Camden

Evergreen did an amazing job insulating our historic home. Their professional staff worked hard to ensure the tough areas in the attic were covered, and clearly communicated their progress. We are seeing the results with our discounted heating bills. Thank you, Evergreen!

Melissa Knoll

Portland

Professional, friendly and hard-working staff. The product/approach they use for insulation is top notch. We felt the difference immediately, both from added warmth and eliminating drafts. The team and management were easily available to answer our questions or coordinate meeting times. Highly recommended.

Kevin J.

Yarmouth

Evergreen did a fantastic job replacing 28 windows in our house. They were friendly, courteous, and very detail oriented. Brian did a great job planning, estimating and executing the project. Our energy use has dropped significantly since the work was done.

Alex B.

Kittery

We couldn't be more pleased with the easy, professional, high-value service from Evergreen. Having purchased an older home that had been in our family for generations, we needed multiple upgrades, including insulation throughout. Evergreen insulated our attic with blown-in cellulose, built a new, super-insulated attic hatch, sealed off the old one (which was just a piece of plywood in a closet ceiling), and also talked us through our best options to upgrade our heating system given the plans we have to add onto the house.

Tom G.

South Thomaston

Very easy process, start to finish. Friendly, professional, and really know their stuff. They made some improvements to our condo and we were very happy with how it played out. Would definitely recommend them.

Clayton Eames

I cant say enough about this company and the benefits that it created for our family. They are very professional and have effectively re-insulated our home. The heating bill proves the point.

Bob O.

Springvale

We had Evergreen come out to our tiny old (100+ year old) house to see what they would recommend for decreasing our carbon footprint, saving money, and increasing our comfort in the cold season. Richard and Bryan were great to work with, patiently answering our many questions and walking us through multiple options. We could only afford to tackle a few areas this year; we ended up replacing some windows and having them weatherize the entire house.

Alan M.

Falmouth

Evergreen removed and replaced the insulation in my attic. They did a great job!, Crew was excellent, and the whole thing went smoothly, and the attic was NOT easy to get into or work in, so kudos to some hard work done well!

Joel A.

Portland

The Evergreen crew who installed insulation in my attic were fantastic! They were very professional, worked exceedingly hard, and they did an excellent job. They were very pleasant and friendly to be around. They cleaned up beautifully after each work day, and left my home in great shape on when they walked out the door for the last time. I can't believe they were able to accomplish all that they did with heat soaring into the 80s and 90s. It was pretty unbearable up there! They have my highest praise and my gratitude.

Cynthia F.

South Portland

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