Solar Lease Contracts Trap Homeowners in Unexpected Costs
Homeowners are struggling with the complexities and ongoing costs of solar panel systems. This includes concerns about system performance, unexpected repairs and replacements, confusing contract terms (like leases and escalations), and difficulty finding reliable installers and service providers, especially as local businesses close. The experience is often frustrating due to a lack of transparency and understanding of long-term costs.
SOURCES (60)
“So I talked with an engineer who will put panels in my home, and he is recommending me 10 Longi panels of 645 W of the model Hi-MO x10 based on how much I spend in electricity for the last 12 months. Is this panel…”
“Hey guys, for those that are more knowledgeable, how does this look? Some of these numbers seem high compared to online pricing. 46 Q Cell 430W panels 46 Enphase IQ8 series microinverters 4 Enphase 10C batteries Whole-home backup setup Preliminary line-item pricing range: Q Cell 430W solar panels Approx. $10,000–$14,400 Enphase IQ8 series microinverters Approx. $8,100–$10,900 Enphase 10C batteries Approx. $22,800–$24,000 Enphase IQ Combiner 6C / gateway / monitoring equipment Approx. $1,600–$2,0”
“In June I had an 18.8 kW system installed. REC Alpha 460 panels, Enphase Microinverters. It is producing what I expected, but it won't produce enough to provide for all my needs. We've decided to add either a roof or pergola over our deck and then put in 13 more panels. Our existing system cost us $41k. Coincidence or not, it ended up being $1K a solar panel. While I realize every system is different, is it likely that adding more panels costs per kW will remain about the same, more, or”
“A solar company wants to lease 0.33 acres of my property in New York for a 2.5 MW project. They’re offering $6,000 per MW annually, totaling $15,000 per year for 25 years. Is this a fair rate, or should I negotiate higher? What annual escalator is typical? Has anyone negotiated a similar solar lease in New York? What rate and terms did you receive? What else should I be considering? submitted by /u/technocrab21 [link] [comments]”
“With the New York Attorney General recently taking action against deceptive practices in the residential solar industry, I wanted to see if anyone else has had a similar experience with NY State Solar. I believe I was also subjected to deceptive and misleading sales practices, and I am currently in arbitration with the company over the agreement. I’m interested in hearing from anyone else who feels they were misled, pressured into signing, not properly informed about the contract terms, or later”
“Our SolarEdge inverter stopped working and so are getting a new one shipped to us, but need someone to install. Our original installer is no longer in business (sigh) and the installer that took over the warranty work doesn't have an installer in MN (bigger sigh). What recommendations on installers do you have that you would trust to do the work? submitted by /u/mrs13mikey [link] [comments]”
“Looking for recommendations for installers in San Diego. First one was pushing me towards a lease because all tax credits have expired. Thoughts? I can afford to buy outright. I’m not sure I’ll be in the house longer than 7 yrs. I use 1300Kwh during my most heavy months. I plan to buy an EV and Hot tub in next year. submitted by /u/rohanman [link] [comments]”
“In Orange County. Reached out to multiple companies and am sharing my best quote for feedback. I'm under SCE if that matters. NEM 3.0 20x REC460AA PURE-RX-DC 20x Enphase IQ8X-80-M-DOM-US Tesla Powerwall 3 (single) Net price is $26,276.23 using prepaid lease. $40,425 before the "discount" from the pre purchase lease. I could also go 2x Enphase 10C instead of TPW-3 for a net price of $32,783. still undecided which route of battery to go but leaning TPW because I have a Tesla. Also co”
“Offer is 13.5kw system, 30 total panels and 2 tesla power wall 3's with 0 escalator for $149/month Im in Chicago suburbs. Been reading lots of horror stories about Sunrun in this subreddit. Good deal? Run? Anyone actually happy with their install? Edit: 15 year term Chatgpt not finding a balloon payment in the contract. Also getting $4500 is subsidies to replace roof before installation from them and 6 months of no payments if i sign by the end of the month. submitted by /u/One_R”
“Hey folks. Looking for a bit of help please. I have a 4 year old Enphase system and something died a few days ago - I've been out of town, but I see my system was making normal power and then all of a sudden - dead. Just got home and was looking at the power panels. No lights on the gateway. When I flip the master disconnect off and back on, the second light from the left ( red one ) flickers for a split second. All power cables look just fine, nothing burnt, nothing looks funny, etc. Backin”
“Can you share the installer, and do they work in Sacramento area? I was quoted $36k for two Tesla power walls before tax incentives and it doesn’t make financial sense at all at that price”
“Bought a house in 2023 with a Sunrun installed system, system is Solar Edge, all already installed (paid ~$18k outright, not leased). SolarEdge SE3800H-US inverter, 12 panels. About a year ago it stopped producing entirely — just sits there blinking green (connected to grid, not generating). Called Sunrun. First rep said labor isn’t covered on customer-owned systems, flat $700 for a tech to come out — full stop. Second call, a different rep actually read my Purchase Warranty contract back to me”
“The installer says he has a wall cap and a surge protector he will put in later this week. submitted by /u/OfficialNearbyTurtle [link] [comments]”
“I’m looking for advice between two quotes in central Jersey. I use about 10,700 kWh a year. Quote 1: $19,789 ($2.39/W) 18x REC460AA Pure-RX, 8.28 kW, 18x Enphase IQ8X-80 Quote 2: $20,038 ($2.33/W) 20x Qcells Q.TRON 430 AC (integrated micros), 8.6 kW Leaning toward the Qcells since it’s cheaper per watt and gets me more production for about $250 more. One thing giving me pause. I’ve read that on the Qcells AC modules the inverter is bonded to the panel and a failure could mean replacing the whole”
“exactly. Dedicated 100amp when I started, upgrading next month to 200 amp with 240v industrial outlets run from it”
“Last 12 months, I paid a total of $3200 in utility bills (location: Detroit suburb). I got a quote for installing solar panels sized at 9.45 kW DC for $28,000. With a 15 year loan through a local CU, monthly payment comes to $260 or $3,120 annually plus some additional utility bills for winter months. My question is does it make sense to go with this now or wait for new incentives (if any) after the next election. Utility bills are only going up every year, and this trend will continue it looks”
“Been thinking about going solar…SunRun was our first quote as they are what got us thinking about it with their knock at the door 🤔 Their quote was: System size - 13.53kW Estimated annual production - 13,345 kWh Estimate annual usage offset - 101% Estimated annual consumption - 13,269 Year 1 solar rate - $0.190/kWh Year one total payment per month - $211.30 Annual escalator - 3.5% My house is maybe 1500 sqft…quoted for 33 panels…complete front and backside of my roof along with some on garage…”
“I noticed that some of my panels were not producing power. Had to find a separate solar company since my original installer is currently bankrupt. The third party installer I found is saying that I have 12 optimizers that went bad, and the cost to RMA and replace all 12 is $1000? I wanted to see if a cost like that seems reasonable? submitted by /u/RoastedChiccyNuggies [link] [comments]”
“Hey everyone, I need some guidance on these two bids. If you could be so kind to provide some thoughts on these two options. Both are roughly 9.5-10kW systems with similar pricing and around $2.9x per watt installed. Both are excellent installers and perform exceptional work. I'm leaning towards the SEG panels + IQ8MC microinverter since I'm not sure on the reliability of the Q-Cells integrated microinverter. This: SEG-440-BTD-BG IQ8MC-72-M-US (240V) That: Microinterver integrated into p”
“They also quoted Powerwall 3 alternative @ 27kWh storage for ~$2.5k more. This is an 8.1 kW system at about 130% of current usage (East Bay, CA) submitted by /u/fallguyxi [link] [comments]”
“Had rec panels installed with enphase micro inverters. What’s the streaks and white material on the panels? Something doesn’t look right submitted by /u/Heavy-Rub1541 [link] [comments]”
“Just started looking into solar, and we need a new main panel. I heard about SPAN and had an installer come out for a quote. They gave me a quote for solar, battery, and a new 200amp panel. Does this look standard? Would I be better using a local electrician for the breaker box, or is it better to use a company that will do it all? I've heard SPAN has poor customer service, and their proprietary software can be an issue. I'd love feedback from anyone that has their breaker box, and espec”
“Looking for a sanity check on a solar+battery quote before I sign. First time doing this, so brutal honesty welcome. Location: Union City, CA 94587 (East Bay). PG&E delivery, Ava Community Energy (CCA) for generation. On the EV2A rate plan. System: - 6.9kW DC / 15x REC Alpha Pure-R 460W panels - Enphase IQ8X-80 microinverters (1:1) - Enphase IQ Battery 10C, 10kWh usable, energy arbitrage mode - Extra: tile roof mounting ($345), "Essentials" backup panel ($2,500) Pricing: - List pri”
“I’m looking for advice between two quotes in central Jersey. I use about 10,700 kWh a year. Quote 1: $21,988 ($2.39/W) 20x REC460AA Pure-RX, 9.2 kW 20x Enphase IQ8X-80 Quote 2: $21,070 ($2.45/W) 20x Qcells Q.TRON 430 AC (integrated micros), 8.6 kW Feel like both are good options but leaning towards the REC. Which would you take? submitted by /u/djrush30 [link] [comments]”
“This is the cash price quote I received. The other option was to pay $95 for 25 years, or roll the solar into my mortgage. Is this reasonable in CA? Home size is approx 1200 square feet System Activation & Permission to Operate (PTO) Your solar system will not be active when you move into your new home. Once you receive your first utility bill, please send a copy. Our team will use your utility information to submit the necessary paperwork to your utility company and begin the Permission to”
“Hawaii now has the highest electric rates in the US. If you’re considering getting home batteries with panels. There’s a program to help homeowners qualify their home at no upfront cost. Ultimately to get the home off the grid of HECOS insane rates and supply your own Renewable energy. submitted by /u/bbbvill [link] [comments]”
“Looking at roughly a 20kwh solar with 50kw battery rack and 2 hybrid aio inverters. Would want it grid tied. submitted by /u/Tasty-Drama-9589 [link] [comments]”
Panels submitted by /u/CautiousGrade798 [link] [comments]
“Hello! Starting to get quotes on a ground mount system for my house and wanting to see from folks smarter than I am if it's a fair price or not. I'm doing a ground mount that is about 325-350ft from my house (so requires a little bit more cabling/trenching). 18x Philadelphia Solar 580w panels 15.4 kWh of Eco-worthy batteries (3 x 5 kwh) Sol-ark 15k hybrid inverter APA Solar - Ready Rack Ground Mount System All wiring, electrical, trenching, permits, etc.. (basically 100% all installed) T”
“A recent post of mine drew a lot of interest in how my utility, Austin Energy (AE) in Austin, TX, deals with solar. Some challenged who I might work for, whether I got things wrong, etc. With that in mind, I thought I'd say about my utility as it seems quite the aberration in its treatment of solar. First, I am not, nor have ever been, employed by a utility or one of its contractors. I do not serve on any utility related committees nor with any city government position associated with a util”
“Finally have it zeroed down to two quotes. Both are prepaid leases that transfer ownership after 5 years (and get the cost down to under $2 a watt in central Ohio. Company 1: 37 rec Alpha panels (115%) Enphase iq8x Pegasus mounting $32k Company 2: 35 Silfab 440 (109%) Enphase iq8ac Ironridge mounting $30k I feel comfortable with either company. Company 1 says I'll get to keep my SREC credits while 2 says I won't be able to sell them until after year 5 (when the panels transfer) so I need”
“How does Hisense compare to American standard or Bosch? I just got a quote from a contractor that has a 10 year labor warranty on their Hisense system. submitted by /u/hershizzlee [link] [comments]”
How is this rate? submitted by /u/Tumadreee [link] [comments]
“Hello! Looking for some input from people who have actually lived with these systems rather than just spec sheets. Current setup is a 4kW SolarEdge system, grid tied, working fine and I have no intention of ripping it out. What I want to do is add 6 more panels, but not hang them off the SolarEdge. The idea is that the new panels go onto whatever new solution I end up choosing, so the existing system keeps doing its thing and the new hardware handles the expansion plus storage. The main goal is”
“Recently I have been thinking about getting solar for my property just to realise everything is from estimations and guessing - whereas I know 100% you can get actual data and figures from a drone inspection and got researching only to find these do exist. Same thing for roof inspections has been bugging me, whenever my landlord in the past had a roofer over they had to actually go up and check things or just guess from below and wait for scaffolding for weeks. I am now a homeowner and wondering”
“I'm brand new to the topic of Solar. I just acquired a house that has an enphase iq combiner 3 system. I would like to add a battery. The installer I'm talking to is keen on Tesla but what are the pros and cons between that and an enphase battery (I assume I'd need 3 5p's to match the capacity)? My home is located in a deep rural area of Florida. We get frequent power outages during bad weather (lightning strikes, downed limbs, etc) These doent typically last more than ~4 hours.”
“I've had my solar system for 3 years now and this will be my 2nd inverter to go caput. The 1st one failed and they sent a replacement and a company came and swapped it, no charge The 2nd microinverter stopped working about a month ago and the solar company said they were sending a micro inverter then 2 weeks after that Enphase emailed me. Email reads: "After investigation, I found out that the microinverter " 202314126320 , " has a Low DCV, which is causing a production issue”
“A salesman came to my home and quoted me 31k for a 19 panel system. No battery included. Is that a bad deal? submitted by /u/HentaiMachine- [link] [comments]”
“Just need to figure out if this is a good deal from a local installer. 20 REC460AA PURE-RX panels 20 Enphase IQ8X inverters 2 Enphase IQBATTERY-10C1P-NA All for $36,425 Financed as a Prepaid PPA with Propel/Comcert Financing, $296/mo There is an $8k rebate for those batteries through local utility My current electricity bill runs around $200/mo. I am more looking to lock in pricing now and avoid future rate hikes. It’s been on average at least 3% annually. The prepaid PPA monthly payment has no”
“It doesn’t look like I’ll be able to do an array of any substance after all. Planned for a 15kw array and utility said today the max size of our shared transformer for solar connection is 16KVA on our 25kva transformer. 11 KVA is already taken by someone else on the transformer. That leaves us with about 5KVA for additional solar interconnection. The options are, size the system down, pay out of pocket to upgrade transformer (they can do this per state law) or withdraw application. So stupid. &#”
“yep, currently have a few homeowners and solar sales reps were working with rn who are interested”
“Hi. I'm using my wife's reddit account to ask this here as I'm running out of options aside from continuing to wait for sma to get back to us. We are brand new to solar, just bought this house that had working solar before and the inverter was broken/not in working condion by the time we moved in. Excuse any formatting issues, on cell. I'm trying to set up the solar monitoring on the Sunny portal by ennexos. During the 3rd step it is unable to recognize the inverter. It just stat”
“Makes for a silly graph, CTs had a spike reporting 261.4kw consumption when one of our EVs was charging. Enphase support is deleting the spike data and I opened up the panel and everything appears fine. My panel would've melted down if that were true. Main question for Reddit - I've had the system for almost four years and this is the first anomaly from the CTs, is there cause for concern? Enphase didn't seem at all alarmed but the guy at the help desk probably doesn't worry much”
“Looking for a sanity check on this Sunrun lease/PPA quote before I sign. Location: Houston,Texas System: 13.95 kW DC, 31 panels (Elin Energy Sirius PV) 1x Tesla inverter Tesla Powerwall 3 + expansion pack (battery backup for AC + fridge) Estimated Year 1 production: 16,537 kWh Estimated energy offset: 97% Pricing (Year 1, with 5% ACH discount, excludes taxes): Solar: $84.75/mo ($0.062/kWh) Battery: $79.99/mo Total: $164.74/mo Annual escalator: 2.99% Performance guarantee: 90% of estimated produc”
“My inverter went out and even under warranty I still had to pay $600 to get it replaced. They did a decent job, I think, but now that I have access to the SolarEdge app they’re quoting me $900 to just inspect my house and see where the 2, non-functional optimizers are. This doesn’t even include the cost to replace them. Am I insane or is this a reasonable cost? I can’t imagine it costs almost $2,000-2,500 just to do simple troubleshooting on plug and play devices. submitted by /u/Fro”
“Hi Everyone, looking into installing solar in bay area, I got a cash quote for 6KW for ~$25,800 with Powerwall 3 (and back up switch) with JAM54D41-440/MB. The same system with REC460AA PURE-RX is $3,800 more expensive, so ~$29,600. My question is - is it worth it to put $3,800 for REC panels? What are the pros and cons? EDIT: Thanks Everyone! It sound like it doesn't make sense to go with REC with this price difference. I'll stick to JAM. submitted by /u/OfferOwns [link] ”
“Chicagoland (ComEd territory), on the hourly real-time pricing plan (Rate BESH). Working with one installer who’s quoted me two different battery architectures paired with basically the same solar array. Trying to sanity-check the comparison before signing. Details below — would love outside eyes on this. Site basics: • ~18,280 kWh/year usage, two central AC units, all-gas otherwise • Roof: rear SW-facing plane (~234° azimuth), 30° pitch, no shading issues • On ComEd hourly RTP (Rate BESH), not”
“https://preview.redd.it/vo0mwqg6cufh1.png?width=1444&format=png&auto=webp&s=07f3b35943cd996469fce0656cd05b09c6e5177c We have this quote from a local company for a 19-panel system for our 1614sqft home in Gardena, CA. We have LADWP and are opting for no batteries. We were told REC is a high quality panel, and the system they are offering is sized based on our current usage (I sent them our historic LADWP electric bill) + more for future proofing for when we add a mini split AC in our”
“Ok so due to the way the solar connection was originally landed (5 yrs ago) it burned the connecting mains to the service panel. So now I have a brand new panel 200 amp service but the way that panel is constructed we cannot land the solar supply-side. So the first answer is to call my installer. They are gone (power home/pink solar) can I land the solar inverter load side on a dual pole 40amp breaker without changing things in the inverter system is net metering. Inverter is solaredge SE10000-U”
“So I got a quote for PPA for my home. The rate is $.13 kwh, 0% escalation, 25 years. 1:1 net metering for the foreseeable future. My current utility rate is $.22. We expect the utility rate to increase come January. With this PPA I can save over $100/month. Is this a good deal? submitted by /u/t40nn [link] [comments]”
“Has anyone had any experience with “Felicity solar”? We are looking to install for a new house to be off the grid. We’ve found it to be more cost effective but have no experience with them and wondering how they are long term? Thanks in advance submitted by /u/Basic-Air9127 [link] [comments]”
“I've been looking at solar installers/quotes for about two weeks now and I've narrowed it down to two possible companies and 3 quotes. I was hoping someone could give me feedback on it before I select just in case I'm missing anything. Quote 1 - Viridis Quote 2 - Viridis Quote 3 - Revision REC460 AA Pure-Rx (19) JAM54D41 440 (20) JAM54D441 440 (20) IQ8X-80-M (19) IQ8MC-72-M (20) IQ8AC-72-M (20) Critter guards Critter Guards Critter Guards 8.74 kW system size 8.8 kW system size 8.8 kW”
“Looking for feedback on a solar quote in Southern California. 6.16 kW system (14 × Silfab 440W panels) 1 Tesla Powerwall 3 (13.5 kWh) Estimated production: 9,363 kWh/year Estimated usage: 7,950 kWh/year Estimated offset: 118% Gross price: $32,292 Discounts/rebates: -$11,303 Total cash price: $20,989 Installer says this will cover about 118% of my annual usage. I’m in Southern California and primarily interested in lowering my electric bill and having backup power during outages. Does this seem l”
“Hello all, I was wonder if people negotiate on installation price for installation. I'm getting a residential system with about 20Kw of solar and 60Kw of Franklin batteries. The total is coming in right around $100,000. The batteries are about $40,000, and I'm estimating the panels around about $20,000. So that means about 50% of the cost is labor. How does the compare to what other people have seen? Kind regards submitted by /u/sma92878 [link] [comments]”