Homeowner receives flood of honest advice after considering leasing solar panels: 'We've gone the past 6 months with no electric bill'

It's an uncomfortable truth for advertising executives, but word of mouth carries far more weight for the average person than a slick million-dollar commercial. That's why a homeowner turned to Facebook for advice about leasing solar panels: "Just [wondering] if anyone has had it done. What are your likes and dislikes on it?"

The community did not disappoint — the poster received a trove of advice and useful tips. 

The scoop

Leasing solar panels is an option for those who wish to avoid the upfront costs of installing them. It's similar to leasing a car — you can use the panels for the contracted period for a fixed monthly payment. When that period is over, the company removes the panels at no additional cost just like you would return a car at the end of the lease, or you can continue leasing them or pursue buying them outright.

There are clear advantages to this solar leasing approach: no upfront cost, lower energy bills over the course of a year, and no responsibility for maintenance.

However, there are factors to consider. First, the most important question: Will the lease be cheaper than your regular electric bill? Probably, but there's no guarantee it will immediately translate into big savings, particularly since it may depend on the size of the panels, the sunlight they get in your area with tree cover, and how much electricity you use.

Secondly, if you're planning to move before the lease is up, it may be difficult to convince a buyer to take on a lease.

Finally, the long-term savings are not quite as good as buying panels outright, though again, you also have less on the line to lose.

When comparing the three options of buying panels, leasing panels, or doing nothing, leasing does have such a level of benefits with minimal downsides that it starts to feel like the logical starting point for the average homeowner not planning to move soon, where it's the sensible thing to do unless you have big reasons to go one of the other two directions. 

How it's helping

Leasing is a useful option for overcoming the biggest hurdle to the wider adoption of rooftop solar panels. Another issue is the confusion over the different options; it can be intimidating for those without much prior knowledge.

Fortunately, there are some good tools to help homeowners navigate the solar landscape. For example, EnergySage can provide useful local information, and Palmetto specializes in leasing specifically and offers a range of options. 

If you were to install home solar panels, which of these factors would be your primary motivation? Energy independence ⚡ Lower power bills 💰 Helping the planet 🌎 No chance I ever go solar 🚫 Click your choice to see results and speak your mind.

Ultimately, whether leasing is the best option will depend on the homeowner's circumstances. Learning from others, as discussed in the Facebook post comments, is an important step in determining the answer to that question. 

What everyone's saying

One Palmetto customer shared a comment on the post about how they're coming out ahead each month: "We are leasing 36 panels. The lease payment is like $204 monthly. With Duquesne Light we had electric bills up to $350 a month. With solar we have gone the past 6 months with no electric bill, just the solar payment."

While not every person who leases solar is guaranteed to use less power than the panels generate, another user expressed a similar outcome: "We have it!! I wish we would have added 1-2 extra panels but we still haven't had to pay a bill."

One user had a cautionary tale after a different company they used went bankrupt: "Do your research with BBB [Better Business Bureau]... when we had to removed the panels for a new roof we had to pay outright for removal and putting them back on. Cost us $6k which should have been covered by our warranty with the original company."

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