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Publish Date: September 2nd, 2024
Brian Lichtenheld is a financial planner with BSW Wealth Partners, another local B Corp. B Corp's are companies that operate to the highest social and environmental standards. BSW provides financial planning and investment management, with a robust and long history of supporting clients who want to align their values with their portfolio. Before BSW, Brian worked in the financial advisory world and it felt “meaningless and empty.” But when he heard about B Corps and got involved by sitting on the B Corp Colorado board, he was introduced to a whole other way to do things. That’s how he found BSW Wealth Partners and Namaste Solar. Read on to learn his financial planner perspective on going solar with Namaste Solar.
What inspired you to start thinking about solar for your home?
Values is the first piece. In terms of reducing our reliance on fossil fuels from a big picture perspective.
And secondarily, having a little more independence from some of the providers who basically have a monopoly, like Xcel. What’s to check them from consistently increasing their prices? I wanted to generate energy independently because I value that, and it’s financially advantageous. If you can have that autonomy and own your own solar, it’s a pretty powerful leverage point.
And then the cost savings, too. It’s a really financially intriguing option.
Brian and Chloe's solar array on their Front Range home, installed by Namaste Solar
What was your decision-making process for going solar?
Well, it was pretty easy because I already had the values alignment piece. And because of personal relationships through the B Corp world, I already was very familiar with Namaste Solar. It was a really easy choice. It was just a question of when. I had trust in the organization and the culture and the people, so it was a no-brainer.
Are there any ways solar has positively impacted your lifestyle?
It feels good because there’s a momentum towards being completely off fossil fuels. Our hot water heater is the only piece left to electrify. Thinking ahead, we’ll be a 2 EV household and getting to that point will be really nice. We’re not there yet but having made progress is really great.
Brian and his partner, Chloe, the day they bought their home in Broomfield
What was the process of installing your heat pump and getting the tax incentives like?
When our A/C went out in July 2022, we saw it as an opportunity to transition our heating & cooling to a renewable solution by installing a heat pump. We were introduced to Energy Smart, coincidentally by a friend who worked at Namaste Solar. Energy Smart is a resource for a healthier, safer, and more energy-efficient homes in Boulder County. They helped us identify a vendor, a fellow B Corp Elephant Energy, and apply for all rebates and tax credits. The installation process was smooth, and we couldn’t be happier with our heat pump, particularly now that we have solar!So, you’re a financial planner. How did you assess the financial investment in solar?
Well, I think the team at Namaste Solar does a really good job of that because the proposal includes the cost and the breakeven analysis. So, it shows you the cost over time and when you’ll break even. On top of that, the data suggests that you basically get your investment as appreciation on your house when you install it. With all that, there wasn’t too much analysis because it had already been done for me. It was like logic checking.
What was your experience like working with us?
Oh, it was great. Every step of the way it was really smooth. From the initial conversations, getting the proposal, to the analysis that went into our specific situation and then having the team come on site, ultimately to the permitting – it was great. Really nice, just down-to-earth people. Super communicative and proactive. Very efficient and they went above and beyond.
You can contrast this experience with health insurance, for example. They give you an 800 number and make you talk to a robot for 5 minutes before you get to someone. And when you do get someone, they’re likely not going to be able to answer your questions very well. That’s kind of the standard.
So, it’s really lovely to have a team that is human who will interact with you positively. It was genuine.
From an investment perspective, how does solar compare to things like savings accounts or the stock market?
Everyone is going to be different. But generally speaking, there’s a couple steps you want to take from a financial planning perspective.
One is, what is your plan if there’s an emergency? So, the rule of thumb is to have your emergency fund. Do you have some savings in the bank? This really applies to savings because there are people out there that don’t have the privilege or are just working paycheck to paycheck. So, if you’re in a position where you could save, the first step is to save three to six months of emergency funds.
The next step is, what happens when you’re done working? What does that look like? Can you save to a company 401k? Can you save to a retirement account? Are you working enough to qualify for Social Security?
And then the third piece is, if you have excess savings, where does that go? And for a lot of people that might mean taking a trip, going out to eat with friends, or whatever their wanted experience is. And I think those experiences are important.
But the other piece that maybe isn’t quite as considered is, what are the steps you can take to reduce your future expenses? And in doing so, how does that create a snowball effect where now the other three elements – the emergency fund, the retirement, the experiences – all grow as a result?
So, what’s a clear example of this? Well, solar because now you don’t have an escalating cost every year and you’ve increased the value of your home at the same time.
I think that bucket of savings is really compelling, and it’s where solar is so powerful.
The sooner you get solar, the faster you’re going to break even. The faster you get to the break even point, the more money you can put towards saving for retirement, saving for experiences, or whatever is important to you in life.
And the longer you wait, that “future” money just shrinks because you’re giving more and more money to Xcel or whoever your provider is.
What a brilliant perspective. Do you have anything to add?
Yeah, there’s this book, called Resilient Investor. And there’s this concept around resilient investing that talks to going beyond the normal financial things you do to check the boxes. You can consider what things you can do, financially, to enhance the world vision that you have. If you’re trying to be a conscious consumer, you might want organic food at the grocery store, to join a community supported agriculture (CSA) farm subscription, or buy fair trade certified clothes. Solar is another step you can take. It’s about using money to align with your values and plan for the future.
Brian with his Namaste Solar lawn sign
If you were recommending someone explore the benefits of solar in three sentences, what would you say?
I think it’s values first, financial planning second, and cultural effect third. So, first, what’s your vision? What’s your purpose for considering solar? Do your values align with that move? And, second, does it logically and financially make sense for you? Then, third, what’s the team or organization you could partner with to make it a reality?
