Here’s what to know<\/p>\n
Most San Jose homes, meanwhile, receive electricity delivery through investor-owned PG&E. Mun explained in a YouTube video<\/a> that Santa Clara operates its own municipal utility, Silicon Valley Power.<\/p>\n Mun’s example involved two families living in similar 1,500-square-foot houses, each with central air conditioning and an electric vehicle<\/a> charging nightly.<\/p>\n The $230 monthly difference would add up to $2,760 annually. The comparison was illustrative, rather than a documented account of two households’ actual bills.<\/p>\n PG&E’s responsibilities include maintaining a much larger service territory, with areas vulnerable to wildfires<\/a>. Mun also linked Santa Clara’s lower costs to the fact that its utility does not need to generate profits for investors.<\/p>\n PG&E’s delivery charges remain part of the cost for electricity supplied by San Jose Clean Energy. According to Mun, those delivery charges accounted for roughly two-thirds of the bill, limiting how much the city’s program can close the gap.<\/p>\n More background<\/p>\n Keeping data center servers running takes substantial amounts of electricity. According to Mun, the city had 58 data centers, with two more in development.<\/p>\n Citing city planning documents, Mun said anticipated demand could nearly triple the city’s existing peak, requiring new high-voltage power lines. He also reported successive Silicon Valley Power rate increases of 5% and 4%, which the city attributed to construction costs and grid upgrades.<\/p>\n For prospective buyers, electricity costs can affect affordability without determining a home’s value. Mun estimated that monthly savings of $230 are comparable to the payment of roughly $35,000 to $40,000 in additional borrowing at interest rates around 7%.<\/p>\n Cheaper electricity matters less than a home’s location, the commute, and its schools. He would not recommend spending an additional $50,000 on a property solely for cheaper power.<\/p>\n What can be done?<\/p>\n Mun recommended requesting 12 months of electricity bills before making an offer, paying particular attention to summer costs. An address near the Santa Clara-San Jose border should prompt buyers to confirm its electricity provider, rather than assume which utility serves the home.<\/p>\n For San Jose households, Mun suggested moving dishwasher use, laundry<\/a>, and electric vehicle<\/a> charging outside the expensive 4-9 p.m. window. Mun also identified two other options: consulting PG&E about a rate plan suited to the household and pre-cooling the home before the expensive period begins.<\/p>\n Solar panels and batteries can also affect a property’s expenses. Mun cautioned that a Powerwall-sized battery can have an installed price substantially above $10,000, making backup power an important consideration beyond potential bill savings. Those systems can require a substantial investment.<\/p>\n For sellers, Mun recommended including Santa Clara electricity bills in disclosure packages and noting installed solar or battery systems in listings.<\/p>\n “Do the free stuff first and don’t expect a battery to get you down to Santa Clara bills,” Mun advised. “It won’t unless you have multiple EVs and just run electricity all day long.”<\/p>\n Where can I learn more?<\/p>\n The Santa Clara-San Jose gap is just one example of the differences in electricity costs across California.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u2022 A Bay Area renter’s non-PG&E electricity rate<\/a> of $0.14 per kilowatt-hour sparked envy.<\/p>\n \u2022 California’s electricity costs rank second-highest in the nation<\/a>, with energy policies drawing blame.<\/p>\n \u2022 A California solar owner compared 29 electricity rate plans<\/a>, finding just 1% potential savings.<\/p>\n \u2022 A California tenant says lost solar credits<\/a> pushed monthly bills from $75 past $200.<\/p>\n Get TCD’s free newsletters<\/a> for easy tips, smart advice, and a chance to earn $5,000 toward home upgrades. To see more stories like this one, change your Google preferences here<\/a>.<\/p>\n \t\t\t![\"Cool](\"https:\/\/www.thecooldown.com\/wp-content\/themes\/tcd\/assets\/images\/divider-icon-earth.svg\"){kind=icon}
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Two comparable homes just blocks apart in Santa Clara and San Jose could come with strikingly different electricity…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":516201,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[29],"tags":[387,147032,9190,33575,165998,198217,1073,88,90,89,50047,535,165335],"class_list":["post-516200","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-san-jose","tag-business","tag-change-the-way-you-get-involved-on-climate-issues","tag-clean-energy","tag-comparison","tag-explore-critical-climate-issues","tag-finance-comparison","tag-home","tag-san-jose","tag-san-jose-headlines","tag-san-jose-news","tag-solar-panels","tag-wildfires","tag-yahoo-finance"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/516200","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=516200"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/516200\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/516201"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=516200"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=516200"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=516200"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}