“We caught up with Jon Wiley, one of the owners of Epic Energy,
to discuss why Epic’s latest stance is necessary in the current climate, and how it can protect homeowners across the state.”
Last summer was the most dangerous wildfire season in California, leaving over 8,000 homes destroyed and 14.5 billion dollars of damage. Hoping to avoid the debacles of 2018, insurance companies throughout the state implemented new standards for home materials and construction aimed at reducing the catastrophic potential of another dry season.
In many cases, however, these stringent standards can hurt as much as help, which is why Renew Master Contractors like Epic Energy have stepped into an advocacy role in their communities. We caught up with Jon Wiley, one of the owners of Epic Energy, to discuss why Epic’s latest stance is necessary in the current climate, and how it can protect homeowners across the state. Here’s what he had to share:
“This leaves some of the most vulnerable households, the ones who need cost-cutting upgrades the most, without any options. One of our customers from last summer is the perfect example.”
While refreshed guidelines ostensibly push residents to make changes for the universal good, they can also push individual homeowners into losing their insurance altogether if they don’t have a pile of cash on hand to meet updated requirements—requirements that didn’t exist when they first performed the financial calculus of buying a home. This leaves some of the most vulnerable households, the ones who need cost-cutting upgrades the most, without any options. One of our customers from last summer is the perfect example.
A few weeks before last year’s wildfires starting erasing whole towns, a couple came to us with a predicament—their insurance was going to drop them unless their roof was repaired, but they didn’t qualify for a bank loan. Keep in mind, these folks had just been told their home is now considered so unsafe that it’s uninsurable just as the first wildfires are popping up—in that circumstance a new roof isn’t just an insurance requirement, it’s a literal imperative.
“We were able to help out by tapping into the PACE program through our partnership with Renew Financial. With the additional leverage they gained through PACE, the couple was also able to pair a solar system they’d always wanted with the new roof they needed.”
We were able to help out by tapping into the PACE program through our partnership with Renew Financial. With the additional leverage they gained through PACE, the couple was also able to pair a solar system they’d always wanted with the new roof they needed. Epic is one of a handful of companies that do multi-measure projects like this one at a high level, and in doing so were able to save these customers some money, but more importantly, we were able give them options, independence, and peace of mind. When the unexpected happens—insurance companies change the rules for coverage on you or your utility goes bankrupt—our customers are insulated against the side effects of dramatic environmental or economic shifts.
Take the solar power we folded into that couple’s roofing project. Due to our long fire seasons, even if your home isn’t under an immediate threat there’s now a six month stretch where the local energy grid can be shut off when winds are too strong, or whole stations are knocked out of service, which would leave some households without electricity for hours. Any home that depends on that power to run medical machines or charge communication systems can’t afford to be without electricity.
The preventative solution we provide against the resulting blackouts is a solar power storage setup. At both the residential and commercial level, solar storage can solve tremendous problems for homeowners, senior living centers, emergency service providers and practically everyone in between when the grid goes down—an increasingly likely scenario in our new climate reality.
“But, with Renew Financial, Epic can step in when banks won’t and protect homeowners from some the systemic changes targeting their homes and lifestyle. That’s why we love what we do, and why we love working with Renew Financial to pull it off.”
Now, we understand that a contractor and their plucky finance partner can’t cure longer fire seasons, expensive insurance requirements, and rising home and utility costs with a few home upgrades. But, with Renew Financial, Epic can step in when banks won’t and protect homeowners from some the systemic changes targeting their homes and lifestyle. That’s why we love what we do, and why we love working with Renew Financial to pull it off.
Epic Energy strives to only work with the best products and the best-tested installation methods, and Renew Financial is proud to partner with their team to offer qualifying families PACE financing on a wide array of renewable energy and energy efficient projects like solar panels, windows, doors, HVAC, artificial turf, and insulation.
DO NOT WAIT UNTIL FIRE SEASON –> APPLY WITH EPIC ENERGY TODAY!
Website: thinkepic.com
Phone: (916) 426-5814
Located in: Sacramento, California
PACE-eligible products: Solar, Roofing, Heat & Air, Windows
