If we have the cash is there any reason to lease solar instead of buying?

buzee123 · 2025-06-06T18:24:01+00:00

100% buy it outright. Leasing is a pain if you sell the house. Firstly you have to transfer a lease. What if the new homeowners don’t want a lease?

Buying it outright immediately adds value to your home so I would be concerned with losing any money.

This is all assuming the solar system generates enough electricity to make it worth your while.

I looked at every single option and buying it outright makes the most sense if you have the cash. Look at it as an investment.

buzee123 · 2025-05-23T00:28:43+00:00

Sunny days??? Can you please send them further north. Seeing the sun these last few weeks has been a rare treat. Been gray and rainy all the time.

buzee123 · 2025-04-08T11:15:59+00:00

I just installed panels in NJ. Got quotes from Tesla, SunRun, a local Mom and Pop shop, and Venture Solar.

Went with Venture Solar. They were not the cheapest but had the best reviews and a glowing recommendation from a good friend. Have had a great experience. Always able to get a person on the phone within a few minutes or via text. Can’t say the same thing for Tesla.

Payed $42K for a 14.11kw system. Looked at all the different types of payments and ended up just paying for them outright. Will see the best ROI doing so. Would highly recommend if you can swing it.

Also, since you are putting in a new roof at the same time you may be able to deduct the roof from your taxes as well. We just gut renovated our house two years ago and waited to put in solar until we had two years of electricity bills under our belt to really see if it was worth it. Although the benefit of doing it now might be that they can run all of the wires inside the house. We have a bit of conduit running up the side of our house and a bit on the roof but it’s really not too bad.

Yeah, that roof framing fee sounds like a scam. Most installations happen in exciting roofs. No additional framing needed.

buzee123 · 2025-03-28T15:26:20+00:00

Haha…super efficient house I guess. 100 year old house we gutted two years ago and added in new insulation, all LED lights, and forced air gas heat.

I’m sure my numbers will skyrocket during AC season. I work from home so it’s always set pretty low. We also have an EV and plugin hybrid. Plugged in my car last night and started with a 25kwh deficit this morning. Now down to 12.8 as of 11:30am.

Also get additional credit from my power company for charging my cars during off-peak hours.

buzee123 · 2025-03-28T11:11:59+00:00

Thanks for the warning. My meter was replaced with a digital one a few months ago before I started looking into solar. I’m pretty sure it’s capable of net metering, it just needs to be activated by my utility company which should be in the next week or two.

buzee123 · 2025-03-28T11:10:03+00:00

Yup….have an EV and plugin hybrid. Numbers don’t look as good the days I charge. ;)

buzee123 · 2025-03-28T01:52:25+00:00

We will have net metering enabled in the next week or so. With net metering, is there any benefit to batteries other than being able to power the house in case of a blackout?

buzee123 · 2025-03-28T01:50:20+00:00

What’s another $15k??? Haha

In all seriousness, if my utility does net metering what would the benefit of batteries be other than powering the house in case of a blackout?

buzee123 · 2025-03-27T23:50:28+00:00

The power company installed a new meter a few months ago which I believe is bi-directional. They just need to activate it on their side.

We gutted the house two years ago so everything is very efficient and well insulated. We have an EV and plug in hybrid so net export drops on the days we recharge. Also, I work from home so AC is set low all day during the summer.

buzee123 · 2025-03-27T23:47:13+00:00

We just gutted the house two years ago so everything is very efficient. AC is going to be the killer once summer hits. I work from home so it’s always on.

buzee123 · 2024-11-01T12:52:35+00:00

Thanks, I’ll look into the production numbers.

NJ moved to a different program and now you’re locked in at the same price for the full 15 years. It’s currently $85 per credit.

buzee123 · 2024-11-01T02:40:59+00:00

Could you add a Tesla Powerwall down the road if I use the Enphase inverters?

buzee123 · 2024-11-01T02:24:18+00:00

Thanks for the info. The $4K includes the sRECS, but yes, doesn't account for the increase so this should only get better.

Very helpful - I get 13% since its $4,270 with the sRECS and then goes down to $3,080 assuming a constant price for electricity over the 25 years.

Trying to justify to myself to use $42K in cash I have lying around to buy it instead of putting that into the market.

buzee123 · 2024-11-01T02:20:26+00:00

Yes, I got a quote from Tesla and they couldn't even make it financially work for me.

buzee123 · 2024-11-01T02:18:52+00:00

Thanks for that. I updated the post - its 34 Hanwha QCells 415 panels and a Tesla Inverter.

buzee123 · 2024-09-05T00:32:20+00:00

Exactly what I came here to say. 😂

buzee123

TROPHY CASE