16 questions to ask before you sign a solar contract
Solar is the largest and longest commitment on this site — twenty-five years of equipment, often twenty years of finance. Every question here comes from a documented complaint.
Solar asks more of a homeowner than any other trade on this site. A plumber is in your house for an afternoon. A solar contract is twenty-five years of equipment on your roof, frequently twenty years of finance, a relationship with your utility, and a thing attached to your house when you come to sell it.
This list was built backwards from the public complaint records of ten solar companies across eight states. Every question exists because asking it would have prevented a real, documented complaint.
The usual caveat, and it matters here: complaint records are a sample of what went wrong. Solar done well is a genuinely good deal for a lot of households, and there are excellent installers in every state. These questions are a filter, and any good company answers all sixteen without flinching.
What am I actually buying?
- Am I buying, leasing, or signing a PPA — in one plain sentence? This determines who owns the equipment, who claims any tax credit, who maintains it, and what happens when you sell the house. It is the most consequential fact in the deal and it is routinely blurred at the kitchen table.
- What exact equipment — panel make, model and wattage, inverter, battery? On paper, in the contract. One complaint records a contract for "ten 400 watt panels" where an inspector found different wattage installed.
- What is the total cash price, and what is the total I will pay over the finance term? Two very different numbers. The second one is what the deal actually costs you, and it is often not volunteered.
- Is a battery genuinely required, or optional? One homeowner was told a battery "was required...I could not have solar panels without it." It generally is not, though it can be a sensible choice depending on your rate plan.
The numbers
- What annual production in kWh, against my last 12 months of actual usage? Both numbers, on paper. An estimate not compared against your real consumption is decorative. Ask what shading analysis and degradation rate were assumed.
- Show me the payback with zero federal tax credit The residential credit for systems you buy ended after 31 December 2025. If a quote still assumes 30% back, every figure downstream of it is wrong.
- What will my total monthly cost be — loan payment plus remaining utility bill? Not "will it cover my bill", which invites a yes. Fixed connection charges and night-time import survive solar. Complaint records are full of "100%" promises that delivered a fraction.
- Which state and utility incentives apply, who applies for them, and who receives the money? These are now the main incentive. One complaint describes a company arranging for state funds to be "issued directly to them" — effectively an interest-free loan from the homeowner.
Financing
- Who is the lender, what is the APR, and is the rate fixed for the whole term? One complaint: "financing terms were not properly disclose...loan was not fixed as represented." Another had an advertised $180 monthly payment increased by the finance company after signing.
- Are there dealer fees rolled into the price, and is there a lower cash price? Low-rate solar financing is frequently paid for by a fee added to the system price. Ask what the same system costs without the finance package.
- When does the first payment fall due relative to activation? Loan payments usually start on the lender's schedule regardless of whether the system works. Ask what happens if activation is late — and get any commitment to cover payments in writing.
- Will anything be recorded against my property? A UCC filing or notice of commencement can complicate refinancing or selling. One homeowner: "notice of commencement is still not removed...unable to refinance."
Timeline, permits and activation
- What is the expected date for installation, and separately for Permission to Operate? Two different dates, weeks or months apart. Homeowners who did not know that have waited seven months, and in one case nearly three years, for PTO.
- Who pulls the permits and files the interconnection application? Get it named. Documented jobs stalled because paperwork was never filed while the homeowner was told it was in progress.
- What happens — concretely — if you miss the promised activation date? A remedy in the contract is worth something. An apology is not.
The roof, the warranty, and the exit
- What is my roof's remaining life, in writing — and what does removal and reinstallation cost later? Panels last ~25 years; roofs often do not. Get the R&R price and response time in the contract, because asking while your roof leaks is the worst possible negotiating position.
- What are the three warranty terms — panel, inverter, workmanship — and who honours each? Manufacturer warranties survive an installer's closure; the workmanship warranty usually does not. Ask outright: "if your company stopped trading, who honours this?"
- What is my cancellation right, the deadline, and any fee? Most states give a short statutory cooling-off period on home-solicitation sales. Complaint records include $3,000 and $1,500 cancellation fees charged on jobs never installed.
- What happens to this agreement when I sell the house? A lease or PPA must usually be assumed by the buyer or bought out, and it can complicate a sale. Ask for the transfer terms before signing, not when you have an offer.
If they knocked on your door
Solar is sold door-to-door more than almost any other home improvement, and the complaint record reflects it — badges refused, visits after 8pm, no-soliciting signs ignored, repeated calls after a no. None of that means the product is bad; it means the sales channel rewards pressure.
- “Extremely aggressive door to door salesman” Homeowner complaint record, UT
- “3 signs on my door forbidding solicitors” Homeowner complaint record, UT
- “will not stop calling 3-5 times per day. I have blocked every number” Homeowner complaint record, CA
- “false promises of free solar” Homeowner complaint record, CA
- “owner became combative” Homeowner complaint record, TX — when questioned on battery ROI
The defence is simply time. Nothing about solar is urgent. There is no legitimate discount that expires at the end of a driveway conversation, and there is no version of this decision that is improved by making it in ten minutes on your doorstep. Take the paperwork inside, get a second quote, and sign next week.
The short version
Walk away
- Quote still assumes a 30% federal tax credit.
- Cannot say plainly whether it is a purchase, lease or PPA.
- Production estimate not compared against your actual usage.
- Financing terms vague, or the rate is not clearly fixed.
- No separate date given for Permission to Operate.
- Will not comment in writing on your roof's condition.
- Discount expires today.
- Offence at "who honours the warranty if you close?"
Worth signing
- Ownership model stated in one plain sentence.
- kWh production vs your 12-month usage, on paper.
- Payback shown with zero federal credit.
- Lender, APR and total-paid disclosed up front.
- Install date and PTO date given separately.
- Roof life and R&R cost in writing.
- Third-party or insurance-backed workmanship warranty.
- Comfortable with you taking a week and a second quote.
Get more than one quote
Two or three quotes is the whole method, and it works better in solar than anywhere else — because the systems are modelled, the assumptions are written down, and comparing three sets of assumptions exposes the optimistic one immediately.
Start with the right specialism
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If you give a PTO date separately, show payback without a credit that no longer exists, and put the roof in writing — this page is describing you. Claim your listing free.
Claim your free listing See listing plansQuestions homeowners actually ask
What should I ask before signing a solar contract?
The four that matter most: am I buying, leasing or signing a PPA (in one plain sentence); what annual kWh will this produce against my last twelve months of actual usage; what is my total monthly cost including the loan payment and the remaining utility bill; and what are the separate dates for installation and for Permission to Operate.
Then get the financing terms, the three warranty terms and the roof's remaining life in writing. Anything said out loud and not written down has a habit of not existing later.
What is the difference between buying, leasing and a solar PPA?
Buying (cash or loan): you own the system and any incentives, and you are responsible for maintenance. Lease: a company owns the equipment on your roof and you pay a fixed monthly fee. PPA: they own it and you buy the power it produces at an agreed rate.
It determines who claims any tax credit, who maintains the system, and what happens when you sell — a lease or PPA usually has to be assumed by your buyer or bought out. Ask which one you are signing, in plain words.
Can I cancel a solar contract after signing?
Usually within a short statutory cooling-off period — most states give one for sales made at your home, commonly around three business days, and some states give longer for solar specifically.
Find the deadline and the method in your own contract and state law, and cancel in writing within the window. Complaint records include $3,000 and $1,500 cancellation fees pursued on jobs that were never installed, so the paper trail matters.
What questions should I ask about solar financing?
Who the lender is, the APR, whether the rate is fixed for the entire term, the total amount repaid over the term, whether dealer fees are rolled into the system price (ask what the cash price is without the finance package), when the first payment falls due relative to activation, and whether anything will be recorded against your property.
Documented complaints include terms "not properly disclose[d]", a loan that "was not fixed as represented", and a monthly payment increased after signing.
Should I sign with a door-to-door solar salesperson?
Not on the doorstep, no — but not automatically never either. The issue is the channel, which rewards pressure, not the technology.
Take the paperwork inside, verify the company's licence and local address independently, and get a second quote. Nothing about solar is urgent, and no legitimate discount expires at the end of a driveway conversation.
What happens to solar panels when I sell my house?
If you own the system outright it generally transfers with the house and can add value. If it is financed, the loan must usually be paid off at closing or assumed by the buyer.
A lease or PPA is the one that complicates sales most: the buyer typically has to qualify and assume the agreement, or you buy it out. Ask for the transfer terms in writing before you sign, not when you have an offer on the table.
How many solar quotes should I get?
At least two, ideally three. Solar rewards comparison more than most trades because everything is modelled — production estimates, degradation assumptions, shading analysis, export rates — and three sets of written assumptions make the optimistic one obvious.
Ask each for the payback with zero federal credit and for the production estimate against your real usage. Quotes that agree on the roof but differ wildly on output are telling you something about the assumptions rather than the roof.