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PACE program presenters outline consumer protections and local opt-in process
Summary
Renew Financial and Ygrene presented the residential Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) program to Titusville council, stressing contractor vetting, state and CFPB oversight (SB 770/2024), and that a local resolution is required for municipalities to opt in; a former city manager shared a positive personal experience.
Representatives from Renew Financial and Ygrene told Titusville council on July 28 that PACE offers homeowners an alternate financing route for hurricane hardening and efficiency upgrades and emphasized new statutory and federal safeguards.
Matthew Choi (Renew Financial) described PACE as a financing mechanism that uses property tax assessments to repay improvements and said the financier retains and disburses funds only after work is verified. Courtney Barker, a former Satellite Beach city manager who said she used PACE herself, told council: “It was awesome. It was very easy. It's very similar to getting a HELOC, but you don't have the credit check,” and praised the contractor vetting and consumer-protection elements of the program.
Mark Sheffel (Ygrene) said the program’s “heart and soul” is deploying private capital responsibly; he cited the original enabling statute (2010), a 2024 rewrite that restored septic-to-sewer eligibility, and Senate Bill 770 (2024) as steps that strengthened contractor oversight and local control. Presenters noted that, as of March 4 (citation in presentation), aspects of PACE implementation fall under CFPB rules that align some disclosures and underwriting to truth-in-lending standards.
Council members asked practical questions about onboarding local contractors, interest-rate behavior and collection mechanics. Presenters said contractor onboarding is possible if a contractor meets vetting criteria; payment is collected via the county tax-collection system only after a homeowner approves final work; and interest rates float with the market. Staff and presenters confirmed that a municipal resolution or ordinance is required to opt the city into PACE, giving local officials an oversight role.
No council action was taken at the recognitions meeting; staff said the topic will return to a future meeting for further review if council wants to proceed.
