A Collier County, Fla., woman alleges several Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) program contractors charged excessive prices and misled senior and non-English speaking homeowners, the Naples Daily News reports. PACE allows homeowners to finance environmentally friendly projects or safety improvements and pay the costs back over time through a voluntary assessment on their tax bill.
After months of research, North Naples, Fla., resident Elena Mola presented damaging information to county commissioners, leaving the PACE program hanging in the balance. Based on her research, Mola alleges some PACE-certified contractors have:
- Charged excessive prices.
- Asked seniors and non-English speakers to sign contracts on mobile phones or tablets they couldn't read or understand.
- Forged the names of homeowners and notaries on notices of commencement required to make property improvements.
- Mischaracterized PACE financing as interest-free, with no prepayment penalties.
- Recorded PACE tax assessments in excess of 20 percent of the fair market value of a home, in violation of state law.
- Started work without a permit.
- Finished work before homeowners received a copy of their financing agreement.
Mola started looking into the program after hearing unscrupulous contractors might have targeted the most vulnerable residents — including seniors, disabled veterans and non-English speakers — and deceived them about PACE, signing them up for loans they didn't understand and couldn't afford.
The PACE program also has come under scrutiny in California. Los Angeles-based Eco Solar Home Improvements, operating without a license, allegedly misled low-income consumers into taking unaffordable financing and abandoning incomplete jobs. The company allegedly defrauded homeowners out of at least $1.4 million by incorrectly using the PACE program. As a result, the Los Angeles city attorney's office froze the assets of the company.
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