Eikenhout : Roofing, Siding and Windows

Tax credit for roofs

Here are the three things that a homeowner must have to qualify for the roofing tax credit as required by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2/17/2009.  First the contractor must provide them a breakdown of material cost, the manufacturer must provide them with a Certification Statement (which states that this product qualifies) and finally they will need IRS Tax Form 5695 (when they fill out their taxes).

It is very important to note that only the material costs qualify for the credit.

By going to www.energystar.gov you can get a complete listing of the roofing materials that qualify.  Here it is summarized:  Metal roofs (in all colors), white asphalt shingles, and some new reflective asphalt shingles.

Certainteed has developed their own line of cool shingles called Solaris in four high definition colors.  Those who want the tax credit must purchase a substantially higher priced lifetime shingle.   So Eikenhout has created an alternative to that more expensive option and a more environmentally friendly solution.

Effective immediately Eikenhout has added a Star White Landmark 30 shingle to our line up.  These white architectural dimensional shingles fully qualify for the tax credit while costing the same as any other Landmark 30 year shingle.

We are beginning to see a resurgence in the popularity of white shingles.  According to Energy Secretary Steven Chu, white roofs could hold off global warming. (Detroit News article)

A white roof is able to reflect 75% of heat while a dark roof absorbs 80% of that heat.  Whether that slows down global warming is a much bigger debate.

But you are welcome to stop by and take a look and see if a white roof could be in your future.  It will save you 30%.