California Solar Questions, Answered Straight

For many homes, yes, but not for every home. It depends on your usage, your roof, your electrical panel and the option you pick. Today most of my clients use a zero-down lease or a prepaid lease. I’ll show you the numbers and tell you if it doesn’t make sense.

You pay $0 down and a monthly payment for the solar. With a zero-down lease, you typically start 10 to 30% below what you pay your electric company today. Some leases have a yearly increase and some stay flat, and I show you which in writing.

You pay upfront for the lease instead of every month, and most people finance that payment. With one prepaid lease I offer, ownership transfers to you after year five.

Every home is different, so I don’t post one price. Your cost depends on your system size (set by your real 12 months of usage), whether you need a battery, your electrical panel, your roof and your electric company. Most of my clients use a zero-down lease, which is $0 down and a monthly payment, or a prepaid lease, where you pay upfront and most people finance that payment. On a free bill review I put your numbers in writing, side by side.

With a lease, you pay for the equipment’s use, usually a set monthly amount. With a PPA, you pay for the power the system makes, per kilowatt-hour. Both can have yearly increases, so read the contract.

It’s the net metering plan for new solar customers on PG&E, SCE and SDG&E. The electric company pays much less for the power you send back than it charges you at night, so a battery and the right size matter a lot.

On NEM 3.0, usually yes. A battery saves your daytime solar for the 4 to 9 PM peak and can keep key circuits on in an outage. If your electric company is LADWP or another city-run one, the answer can be different.

Yes. That’s one of the most common calls I get. There are two ways to add the power you’re missing. One keeps your current net metering plan and the other moves you to NEM 3.0, and I run the numbers both ways.

Most of the time it’s simple: your house uses more power than your panels make. A battery by itself usually won’t fix that, because a battery moves power, it doesn’t make more. There are two real ways to add the power you’re missing. One keeps your current net metering plan: you add a separate system that never sends power to the grid. The other is a zero-down lease add-on, which adds power with nothing upfront but moves the whole home to NEM 3.0, so I design it with a battery. I run the numbers both ways, and you pick.

Many solar homes on PG&E, SCE and SDG&E settle up once a year. If your system made less than you used, that true-up bill can be a big surprise. A system sized to your real usage helps avoid it.

It depends on the option and the year. A lease can usually transfer to a credit-approved buyer, or you can pay it off. I walk through your exact contract terms before you sign.

My licensed installation partner handles the site survey, permits, install, inspection and permission to operate. I handle the design, the paperwork and your questions.

No, I don’t sell roofing. If your roof needs work before solar, I’ll tell you up front so you can handle it first.

I’m based in Victorville and work across the High Desert and Inland Empire, and I help homeowners in much of California by video call. See my service areas.

No. It’s free, and there’s no pressure. If solar doesn’t make sense for you, I’ll tell you that too.