If ever there was a good time to take advantage of a federal energy tax credit with energy efficient windows, this is the time to do it.
Not only will Uncle Sam reward you with an energy savings tax credit up to $1,500 but you also may qualify for an additional $500 rebate from participating energy companies. If you live in the Boston area or other Northern climate, you will appreciate how much energy efficient windows can save you on your heating bill. Energy Star windows, doors and skylights that qualify for this tax credit have been proven to reduce energy bills by an average of 7-24 per cent. This means that if you were replacing single pane windows, annual energy savings for an average home would be $126 to $465 and would approximate $27 to $111 when replacing double-pane clear glass windows.
Qualifications for federal energy tax credits …
Not all energy efficient windows qualify for this federal energy tax credit. In fact, not all Energy Star rated products qualify.
For more than 80 years, stocks have been paying dividends that have provided an important boost to the overall return of stocks. Dividends often get downplayed but they historically have been very significant. Over the last 82 years of history in the stock market, an average of 35% of monthly returns from stocks have come from dividends, a number much higher than most would guess. Twice there have been entire decades where the dividends paid to shareholders of stocks made up more than 50% of the average monthly return.
With over 140 bank failures in 2009 alone, it goes without saying that this has been one of the most challenging years ever faced by banks. Banks of all sizes have fallen in the economic storms and challenges in the capital markets but recently the bank failures seem to be limited to small, community banks as opposed to large national and regional banks and financial institutions.