ORLANDO and OCALA, Fla., July 12, 2013 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Del Webb, a division of PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM), and SolarCity (Nasdaq:SCTY), a leading provider of clean energy, today announced that homes in the Del Webb Orlando and Del Webb Stone Creek active adult communities in Florida will include a pre-installed 2 kilowatt (KW) solar system for a limited time. This system will save more than $300 to the homebuyers on their electricity bills every year. Del Webb's agreement with SolarCity allows homebuyers to pay less for clean electricity generated by their individual home's solar system, than the current utility rates.
Del Webb will include the 2 kW solar system as a temporary incentive with an option for the homebuyer to upgrade up to an 8 kW system depending on the design and style of the home. The savings for each homebuyer will vary based on their level of personal electricity use and the size of their individual solar system. New homebuyers can choose from 13 different home designs at the Del Webb Orlando community and from 17 at the Del Webb Stone Creek community in Ocala.
"Boomers are more environmentally conscious than previous generations. As more boomers start to retire, they are choosing Del Webb homes which are packed with energy efficiency features and now a solar system that will save them hundreds of dollars on their utility bills for years," said Sean Strickler, vice president of Sales, North Florida Del Webb. "We partnered with SolarCity because they handle the whole process of adding solar to a new home which gives our homebuyers the chance to save money and benefit from their new solar powered homes with peace of mind."
Del Webb is a leading builder of new homes targeted to pre-retirement and retiring boomers, and was ranked among the 'Best Places to Retire in the U.S.' In addition to the financial savings, Del Webb homebuyers get the satisfaction of knowing that their choice of living in a solar-powered home reduces their individual carbon footprint. Every standard 2 kW system at a Del Webb home in Florida is equivalent to reducing more than 95,000 pounds of carbon-dioxide (CO2) emissions over the lifetime of the agreement.* The total impact of each standard 2 kW solar system at Del Webb homes in Florida over the next 20 years would equate to planting more than 2080 trees, or eliminating the use of more than 1795 common propane cylinders used in home barbeque grills.*
"SolarCity is proud to partner with Del Webb and to offer Florida homebuyers a choice to live in homes powered by clean, renewable solar electricity," said Walter Cuculic, SolarCity's national manager of Builder Programs. "With solar as a standard option on every new home, Del Webb Orlando and Del Webb Stone Creek homebuyers will enjoy savings from the very first day they move into their new home."
SolarCity custom designs and installs each solar system at Del Webb communities before the homebuyer moves into their new home, and will provide customer service, continuous monitoring and take care of any repairs ever needed for the lifetime of the contract. SolarCity also provides a personalized MySolarCity web portal to each homebuyer giving them direct access to view their electricity consumption and their solar system energy production online.
* Calculations are based on agreement terms of 20 years and based on data from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and American Forests.
About PulteGroup
PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM), based in Bloomfield Hills, Mich., is one of America's largest homebuilding companies with operations in approximately 55 markets throughout the country. Through its brand portfolio that includes Centex, Pulte Homes, Del Webb and DiVosta Homes, the Company is one of the industry's most versatile homebuilders able to meet the needs of multiple buyer groups and respond to changing consumer demand. PulteGroup conducts extensive research to provide homebuyers with innovative solutions and consumer inspired homes and communities to make lives better.
About Del Webb
Del Webb is a national brand of PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE:PHM). Del Webb is the pioneer in active adult communities and America's leading builder of new homes targeted to pre-retirement and retiring boomers. Del Webb builds consumer inspired homes and communities for active adults ages 55+ who want to continue to explore, grow and learn, socially, physically and intellectually as they look forward to retirement. For more information on Del Webb, visit www.delwebb.com.
About SolarCity
SolarCity® (Nasdaq:SCTY) provides clean energy. The company has disrupted the century-old energy industry by providing renewable electricity directly to homeowners, businesses and government organizations for less than they spend on utility bills. SolarCity gives customers control of their energy costs to protect them from rising rates. The company offers solar power, energy efficiency and electric vehicle services, and makes clean energy easy by taking care of everything from design and permitting to monitoring and maintenance. SolarCity currently serves 14 states and signs a new customer every five minutes. Visit the company online at www.solarcity.com and follow the company on Facebook & Twitter.
This release contains forward-looking statements including, but not limited to, statements regarding expected savings, expected electricity offsets and assumptions relating to the foregoing. Forward-looking statements should not be read as a guarantee of future performance or results, and will not necessarily be accurate indications of the times at, or by, which such performance or results will be achieved, if at all. Forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual performance or results to differ materially from those expressed in or suggested by the forward looking statements. You should read the section entitled "Risk Factors" in our registration statement on Form S-1, which has been filed on June 18, 2013 with the Securities and Exchange Commission, which identifies certain of these and additional risks and uncertainties. We do not undertake any obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future developments or otherwise.