One homeowner suspected funny business when their electric bill was much higher than expected — even though their community uses solar power through their HOA.
"Our HOA charges us electricity monthly. However, they are only providing the KWH and a bill. No information or breakdown," said the skeptical Redditor. "They won't show us the meters or readings and the charges seem outrageously high."
Many HOAs don't allow homeowners to install solar panels, even though solar is much cheaper than other sources of electricity and would save the homeowners money. These HOAs are more concerned with the appearance of the solar panels than with the well-being of residents and the environmental benefits of using a non-polluting energy source.
However, in this case, even after solar was installed, the homeowners allegedly didn't get the benefits.
"My neighbor and I have been doing some digging," said the Redditor. "They said we are using solar panels in the day with a solar company (conveniently owned by the developer) and getting charged at night via the state's electric company."
According to a comment, the original poster was informed that each home had its own meters for the solar company and the state-provided power.
"They wont let us see the meters though in the electrical room!" they said. "I called the electric company of the county; they said my KWH doesn't match the cent they charge. My cost is WAY higher — plus with solar it should be lower anyways. They said [the HOA] is likely charging something extra in our cost."
Commenters were not happy with the HOA's setup.
"I'm guessing the builder's solar 'company' installed a bunch of solar and took the tax credits; now they are charging you the cost of the equipment and for using it in order to make a profit," said one user. "You're probably getting ripped off."
One way to address the problem would be to install their own personal solar panels to generate free energy — but the HOA is unlikely to allow that. Another option would be to use the HOA's process to change the rules, which is something every HOA resident should learn how to do.
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