How To Avoid Solar Panel Scams | Ask This Old House
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Publicado 2022-11-07
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Why Solar is So Popular
Everyone’s phones and internet browsers are full of solar panel ads, and there are now door-to-door salesmen walking through neighborhoods attempting to sell systems. Why is solar so popular right now?
Ways to Finance Solar Installation
There are essentially four ways to pay for solar installation. Those ways include the homeowner paying for the solar system themselves out of pocket, using a third-party lender to secure a loan for the system and installation, leasing the system from a solar company, and a power purchase agreement. The benefits of these options vary.
Cash
When a homeowner pays for their own installation, they own the system. This means they can take full advantage of the solar rebates offered by federal and local governments. While they do have to come up with a lot of money (typically north of $13,000), they don’t have to pay interest. They might also be able to obtain a discount for full payment.
Loan
Some homeowners may choose to secure a third-party loan to pay for their solar panel system. In this scenario, the homeowner still owns the panels, and they retain all of the tax rebate benefits, but they’ll have to pay back the loan amount plus interest.
Leasing Agreement
Homeowners who want solar but don’t want to pay out of pocket or secure a loan may choose to lease their system from a solar company. When this is the case, the homeowner benefits from lower electricity bills, but the leasing company retains all of the tax benefits and rebates, and owns the system.
Power Purchase Agreement
Similar to a leasing agreement, homeowners who enter into power purchase agreements will pay less each month for electricity. They agree to purchase their electricity from the solar company in exchange for the solar company installing the panels on the homeowner’s roof. Again, in this scenario, the solar company retains the right to rebates and tax benefits.
How to Choose a Solar Company
With the ability to finance solar panel systems, get paid for them, and retain tax benefits, there are a lot of solar companies sprouting up. Not all of these solar panel companies are reputable, however. Some are simply in it for revenue generation, and once they land the agreement, there is very little incentive to return and service the system.
Instead of choosing the first solar panel installer that knocks on the door, do a bit of research. Ask friends and family who they used for their solar panel systems. Also, for each potential contractor, find out where they’re from. It’s better to work with a locally owned company than one run by a conglomerate 3,000 miles away.
It’s also important to know how long a company has been in business. Ten years of experience looks better than 6 months. And while a new company isn’t necessarily a bad company, the homeowner should simply do more research to verify that the company is legitimate.
One other thing: Look for Solar North American Board of Certified Energy Practitioners (NABCEP) [www.nabcep.org/]. These contractors have undergone third-party certification that ensures they know what they’re doing.
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How To Avoid Solar Panel Scams | Ask This Old House
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Todos los comentarios (21)
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It really is a shame that it feels like dealing with a used car salesman when talking to these people.
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I answered an ad that said this solar company would rent my roof to install solar. When they came they said they didn't want to rent my roof but they could put $60,000 worth of panels in my yard and arrange financing. According to them after 20 yrs the panels would have paid for themselves and I could buy them for $1 So, for 20 years I'd have their panels on my property, with a lien on my property for the $60,000 financing loan and everyone makes money except me, the guy with the roof.
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We need more electricians that are qualified for and willing to install homeowners systems. It’s so much cheaper buying the equipment yourself nowadays and have a qualified and licensed electrician install it, it’s almost plug and play nowadays.
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The lenghts banks go to screw the single person is amazing.
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As this program is for the DIY crowd, it'd be great to have a few episodes dedicated to the best value home efficiency prep work & self-install of a modern PV+battery system. There's whole youtube channels dedicated to these, but TOH has production means & reach to make great contributions in a time where it's only becoming more valuable & important to manage energy wisely.
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The ad before this video was for nothing-down solar roof installs.😮
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Love the way he explained this! Every single bit!
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We couldn't agree more with what was mentioned in this video! This is a must-watch for anyone considering solar!
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My brother is a real estate agent and has seen many sales fall through because of solar leases. New buyers often don't want to take the leases over and just move on.
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I think TOH could do a whole hour long show on solar, you touched on a couple good topics, like the 20 year lease program, which I have read articles from reputable solar installers, they typically recommend to stay away from. Also the inverter does each panel have a micro inverter or a single inverter for the whole system and what happens if the inverter fails. Then there is the whole discussion about batteries and what types are available, such as Teslas power wall or Generics version etc. We plan in 2 years to build our retirement home, smaller, with solar so as to give us options other than for the grid and potential downtimes.
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So many people are getting scammed by solar installers right now, it's amazing. This information needs to be spread to every person thinking about solar. I've had to talk so many friends and family out of horrible solar deals because there was no way it was ever going to be financially viable. I got solar when my state had incentives, but the budget was allocated in the first year and there haven't been state incentives yet. Without the incentives, the cost of the system will take way too long, given the relatively low cost of energy, where I live. I know the cost continues to decrease, but without state and federal incentives, the ROI is just not reasonable for many. I wish more people were able to understand the economics before making the leap and this video does a good job of explaining that. Thanks Ross.
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I have been waiting years for a video like this. Thank you! (Also, the add that ran after this video was for one of the solar lease schemes. Good chance to apply what I learned!)
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Tons of great info here for a first time looker that doesn’t want to be bombarded by salesmen! Thank you!
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Great info! Glad to see you calling out bad actors in the industry
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Very concise breakdown. Thank you.
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Many UNKNOWNS: 1) not all homeowners insurance will cover homes with solar panels . 2) You need to insure the system in case of storm damage. 3) your roof needs to be fairly new. 4) states have different rules governing the system. 5) the amount of payment for energy you generated is much less than what the provider charges . 6) all solar panels and related equipment are not equal.
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Very Informative. THANK YOU!
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Good info about solar. As I am from North Carolina I would like to say that there was a company local in state installing solar and they just went out of business because supposedly they had an issue with a part that was supplied by another vender and neither company wanted to warranty the problem with the solar panels. Also the company lied about how much the homeowners would save in electrical cost.
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Great information, thanks.
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My house came with a PPA through Vivint and it was a total scam. With Vivint PPA I was paying MORE for electricity than just getting it off the grid. They've been sued by many states because their contracts are so bad. I wish my real estate lawyer had warned me when I was signing papers :/
