- Scott Pape finally puts an end to ‘pathetic excuses’
- He wishes he had changed his electricity source sooner
The Barefoot Investor has revealed which investment he hasn’t made before, calling it one of his “most embarrassing confessions.”
Scott Pape believes he could have earned a 30 percent return on his money for years to come if he had embraced solar energy sooner.
He said he had installed solar panels on his ‘sheep shed’ and immediately saw the benefits.
“Well, when I think about it, it turns out I had the same excuses people give me for not investing in the stock market,” Mr. Pape wrote in the Sunday Telegraph.
He said he found the idea of getting the right quote for solar panels quite boring and a bit complicated.
Mr Pape said he was frightened by the idea of “cowboys” and scammers in the solar industry.
In addition, he said that his life was too busy with his four children.
“Okay, not only were all my excuses pathetic, they also cost me money,” he wrote.
Scott Pape revealed that he didn’t install solar panels on his house for far too long, and it cost him a lot of money
He said he had his 11-year-old son read the book ‘The Good Solar Guide: Seven Steps to Tiny Bills for Australian Homeowners’ by Finn Peacock before he started searching online for solar panel suppliers in his area.
He used solarquotes.com.au to find his postcode and quotes from solar panel installers in his area.
He then searched online for reviews of the three solar companies in his area, found two that were good, but dropped one.
He said both companies called him and came to his home the same week.
Within 30 minutes of snooping around Mr. Pape’s house, taking some photos and looking at his latest energy bill, they were gone.
Mr Pape said the quotes came in by email later in the week and both companies had designed similar systems for about the same price.
“Look, the numbers don’t lie: in most cases, you get a higher return on installing solar panels than on most other investments,” Pape said.
‘Learn from my mistakes and let your children do it! Really, it’s child’s play. Hello sunshine!’
The barefoot investor said he had his 11-year-old son do most of the research