Whether you want to reduce your reliance on fossil fuels, have heard about the savings of going solar, or your property is now required to add solar power, your next thought is likely, “Can I offer solar energy to my multifamily residents?” The answer is yes, you can legally distribute solar energy to residents. But, when done effectively, you can also generate a new net operating income (NOI) for your multi-family property.
The CA Policy That Makes Multifamily Solar Possible
To understand the benefits of multifamily solar, it’s essential to understand the policies that allow you to offer solar energy to your residents. It is all done in accordance with established California public utility policy (CPUC Code 2868) allowing multifamily buildings to operate as independent solar producers and distribute solar energy to residents.
How Do You Distribute Solar Energy on Multifamily Properties with Multiple Meters?
Multifamily properties can install solar and earn credits for feeding the grid just like single-family properties. For example, a single-family homeowner who installs solar on their home may not use 100% of the solar energy their panels generate. So, the surplus of electricity is fed into the utility’s power grid. The utility tracks this, and the homeowner receives credits on their electric bill. This is called Net Energy Metering (NEM). Calculating the estimated savings from solar and NEM credits is one of the main motivators for homeowners investing in solar, as it shows how long it will take to make a return on their investment. The policy that enables the credits to benefit one system with multiple meters is called Virtual Net Energy Metering (VNEM). While VNEM ensures that you can benefit from offering solar energy to your residents, it doesn’t give you a system or structure on how to optimize the distribution of the solar credits to your residents to maximize your investment. This leaves many multifamily property owners hesitant about offering solar energy to their residents. That’s where Ivy Energy comes in. With our Virtual Grid software, it’s easier than ever before to distribute solar energy to your residents to maximize your investment.
How to Offer Solar Energy to Your Residents
- Work with a Solar Contractor to Determine Your Solar Needs, Run the Numbers, and Install the System.
The great thing is, you don’t have to navigate this alone. We provide complete turnkey solutions from step one! This ensures you start your multifamily solar project on the right foot with our innovative revenue forecasting tools. Also, we have a network of solar contractors that we work with to provide customized solutions based on your property’s specific needs.
- Implement Ivy’s Virtual Grid Software.
While VNEM provides the ability to earn credits for the energy your solar generates, they don’t provide a simple way to distribute the solar energy and accurately bill for it. Ivy’s Virtual Grid is a solar billing software solution that is easy to set up and even easier to manage. The Ivy Energy team designs a custom implementation plan to streamline the onboarding of residents and rollout of your new solar billing program. Once it’s all set up, it is seamless for your property management to maintain. The software handles it all, including:
- Tracks the solar energy generated by your system and your VNEM credits.
- Captures individual meter data.
- Calculates the savings to create a community savings ledger that reserves a portion of the savings for the property owner and passes on a portion of the savings to residents.
- Uses a proprietary algorithm to distribute the resident savings based on actual individual energy usage, instead of the typical flat discount for all residents.
- Provides residents with a simple, accurate monthly solar energy bill.
- Let Your Residents Know About Their Solar Savings!
We partnered with Fairfield Residential, a multifamily real estate company in San Diego, to study the impact of our Virtual Grid Software. 95% of the residents surveyed said they would use solar as a multifamily resident if it cost less than energy from the grid. So, a huge part of the success of your multifamily solar program is showing your residents their savings. With our solar billing software, your residents receive a monthly solar bill that clearly illustrates their energy usage and a comparison of their bill with solar and without solar. A straightforward solar bill that shares the savings secures resident buy-in and your return on solar investment.
Where Does the Additional Net Operating Income Come From?
Before you invest in solar for your multifamily property, we understand that you have to know it makes sense financially. If you go with flat discounts or try to distribute savings by your own calculations, you most likely won’t reap the financial benefits of solar. The Virtual Grid software creates a community savings ledger that shares the energy savings with your residents but also allocates a portion of the savings to you, the property owner.
Depending on your location, this could result in $650 to $1000 per unit in additional NOI.
Your residents will be thrilled to save money on their monthly electric bills, leading to greater retention and referrals. Not to mention, offering clean energy and solar savings to residents can help your property stand out in a crowded market.
Discover a New Kind of Property Income with Ivy Energy
Whether you are just starting your multifamily solar journey or you already have a system installed, we’re here to make sure you don’t leave any money on the table. Our hands-on approach to solar-related public policy, revenue forecasting, and experience with multifamily solar projects makes us your guide to the world of solar. Schedule a demo or request a revenue estimate for your property, so you can take the next step in offering solar energy to your residents today.
Pioneering the Future of Multi-Tenant Solar Energy Management
2024 was a trailblazing year for Ivy Energy, where we shattered barriers, redefined possibilities, and delivered innovative solutions to address the multi-tenant solar split incentive challenge. By driving product advancements, forging impactful partnerships, and scaling operational processes, we empowered multi-tenant properties to embrace clean energy with confidence.
A Year of Growth and Market Expansion
Ivy has grown its active project pipeline 450% compared to 2023, with a line of sight to clear +600% in active projects by the end of the year. Our tech-enabled solutions empower more communities than ever. With $18M in Series A funding (Read more) and the strategic acquisition of Glow Energy (Read more), we are poised for unprecedented growth and impact. This investment enables us to enhance our technology, streamline operations, and expand our reach into new markets nationwide.
Entering new markets with increased resources allows us to address diverse energy challenges and deliver tailored solutions to property owners and tenants. Additionally, the launch of our consulting arm provides expert guidance for our clients and partners to save money and enhance ROI while navigating intricate solar investments.
Meaningful Operational Updates
At Ivy, innovation isn’t just about technology—it’s about creating digital tools that empower our clients and their tenants:
- PropTech Integrations: Partnered with RealPage, Entrata, and Yardi to automate rent roll syncing, move-in/move-out updates, and direct charge posting to resident ledgers. These integrations reduce monthly processing time by up to 2 hours per property while enhancing data accuracy and operational efficiency.
- NEM Credit Delay Optimization: The Utility Coordination team adopted the CPUC informal complaint process to reduce delays in NEM activation after PV solar system commissioning. This improvement cut the average resolution time for delayed NEM credits from 123 days in 2023 to 49 days in 2024, allowing property owners to see Net Operating Income over two months sooner on average.
Platform Advancements that Lead the Industry
Our engineering team broke new ground, ensuring our platform stays ahead of the curve:
- Migrated to a new infrastructure processing system for faster processing and further automation improvements across operational features.
- Introduced IvyDual in response to regulatory requirements in California, which allows us to enter new markets where consolidated billing is not viable.
- Achieved SOC 2 Compliance, reaffirming our commitment to data security. (Read more)
- Built initial public API for Conservice integration and new utility data access pathways, strengthening our platform’s versatility and reliability.
Empowering Positive Experiences with CX
At Ivy Energy, our customers rely on us as true partners in their clean energy journey, helping them achieve long-term NOI growth while providing exceptional support for property owners and tenants. We consistently deliver this experience by simplifying complex utility processes and offering our white-glove service that ensures our clients feel supported, informed, and empowered to succeed. This year, Ivy’s Customer Experience Team launched two significant platforms:
- Ivy Implementation Portal: A step-by-step, transparent portal that simplifies solar implementation for our clients and partners across multiple organizations. (Watch a walkthrough of the new portal here.)
- Resident Help Center: Educate tenants about the solar program with helpful resources and offer direct support online or by phone. (Explore the Help Center)
Shaping the Future Through Thought Leadership
In 2024, Ivy Energy reinforced its position as an industry leader; our Virtual Grid 3.0 impressed the judges and earned first place in Solar Power World’s “Best in Show” award for large-scale solar innovation. (Read more)
Leadership team members Alex Dogan, Tanya Kuhn, and Sean Nam were celebrated in San Diego Business Journal’s Leaders of Influence in Technology 2024 for their contributions to advancing sustainable energy. (Read more) Ivy was also featured in Alt Energy Magazine (Read more), San Diego Business Journal (Read more), and on Solar Academy. (Read more)
Logan Carter showcased Ivy’s groundbreaking innovations in a main stage speech at Cretech NY (Watch here), an engaging appearance on the IMN Podcast (Listen here), and a deep-dive interview with Chris Moreno, also known as “Mr. PropTech.” (Watch here) Ivy’s policy team further expanded its influence by authoring a Model VNEM Whitepaper, a critical guide to enabling multi-tenant solar models nationwide. (Read the Whitepaper).
Measurable Environmental Impact
This year, Ivy Energy amplified its environmental contributions, with contracted units in implementation set to offset an astounding 109 million pounds of CO2. Meanwhile, active units have already offset 9 million pounds of CO2, demonstrating our ongoing dedication to reducing carbon emissions.
Looking Ahead to 2025
As we celebrate 2024’s successes, we are always looking to the future. In 2025, we’ll continue to push boundaries, deliver innovations that empower our clients, improve tenant experiences, and lead the multi-tenant housing sector toward a sustainable future.
A Message from Dover Janis, CEO of Ivy Energy
“2024 was a year of progress and adaptation. While utility-caused delays challenged our growing pipeline, our focus on agile problem-solving reduced their impact and kept the market moving forward. This is a testament not only to the dedication and focus of our team but also to the strong macro-level foundation that the onsite energy business model provides for real estate owners, even in the face of monopoly-driven resistance. With a large and expanding customer base and hundreds of projects, we have continued to validate the transformative potential of clean energy solutions for shared communities. I’m incredibly proud of our team—now among the most mature, knowledgeable, and experienced in the industry—as we trail blaze the path forward. The market is primed to grow and drive transformative change in local communities. I’m deeply grateful to our partners and customers, whom we have the privilege of serving every day as we continue to lead the way.”
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