Solar power investment. I saw an ad on the Yahoo site that was advertising solar power for NC residents with no cost (the fine print says "at install") and a rebate of over $2k. I was intrigued so I started the process and we sat thru a sales presentation. After all who wouldn't like no electric bill? The guy comes over to the house, takes some photos outside, comes in and takes some measurements in the attic, looks at the latest electric bill and then our homeowners insurance policy. The bottom line is it will cost us $52k that can be paid over 25 years with a monthly bill of $186 (our equalized payment bill with Duke Energy is $149) and they'd pay the first year of the loan (that's the $2k rebate). We passed on this deal. I knew it'd be expensive but this is outrageous. Among my concerns was buying technology that will probably be obsolete in 5 years and resale means a prospective buyer is obligated to take on this loan. The 26% tax credit of $13k wasn't enticing enough.