Syndicated from www.solarlease101.com's John Schumpeter.
From the guise of an ordinary customer, I did some investigative work on buying solar panels from each of the "Big Three" solar lease companies - Sungevity, Solar City, and SunRun - in San Francisco. Since the city is the epicenter of these leasing companies, it was easy to get quotes for putting solar on my house here. Even though there are other leasing companies out there, these three companies offer a majority of the volume in the market.
A buzzword often used in promotions for small-scale solar PV development is the term "distributed generation". It's a broadly defined term, partially because it's still more of an idea than a tested alternative to centralized power grids common in most communities.
Communities and homeowners have more reason to be optimistic about solar financing.
A very informative and thorough study from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) called The Transformation of Southern California's Residential Photovoltaics Market through Third-Party Ownership" has rightfully received wide readership for its insight into the trends of residential PV markets moving towards third-party ownership models - particularly, as the study's evidence demonstrates, in southern Califo
The Empire State continues to step up as an emerging national leader in supporting residential solar, as Governor Cuomo's recent budget plan includes new provisions that will open more opportunities for homeowners to install panels on their roof.
The most recent block for the widely popular 
While 2011 may mark the first year solar leasing became a widely accepted option to finance and install residential solar systems, 2012 is shaping to be a year of growth - and differentiation - in the niche industry of providing solar leases. Though the basic structure of a solar lease is similar across the board, a number of considerations can greatly affect the customer's experience and overall benefits.
The media and airwaves have been full of discussion over the Pennsylvania SREC market, as the state legislature considers amending the current RPS law that created the market a few years ago. Perhaps no single group has a stronger interest in the outcome of this proposed legislation and the overall health of the SREC market than Pennsylvania homeowners (whether or not they have panels on their roofs).
A major selling point for residential solar generation is the advantages it brings of 
As we near the end of a tumultuous year for solar PV, the 
