Distributed generation, electricity being generated on the
house side of the meter, usually in the form of a solar array in New England,
has a chance to be a real game changer in how consumers think about power.
Combined with utility meters that measure not only energy consumed by the
building, but electricity being supplied to the grid, from the distributed
generation resource, are here to stay. Meters that “spin backwards” called net
meters, actually pay the homeowner for supplying power to the utility grid.
As smart grid improvements, and consumer sophistication
about how electricity is priced matures, it is conceivable we could reach a
time when homeowner investment in distributed generation changes our perception
of utility bills to utility invoices. This morning I mentioned on the RE/MAX Leading
Edge Green Facebook page that the wholesale price of electricity was $0.00 from
4-6 AM. Hopefully with the right smart grid choices, consumers will be able to
take advantage of using power at off-peak times when the price of power is less
expensive.
Combining advanced
smart grid technologies with distributed generation will one day need to be
looked at by real estate appraisers as a property asset. Consumer perception of
utility bills as a liability may be changing.
