Nine Lies Commonly Told To Solar Customers

( Hover over the 9 points to learn more )

1 - Solar is Free

Some social media ads say “Free Solar Pay Nothing” but this is a misleading statement. keep reading...

It’s true that government incentives help lower the cost and improve your return on investment. Solar financing allows many customers to spend the same or less than they are currently spending on electricity. This allows homeowners to lock in a fixed electricity cost rather than seeing their electricity rates increase year after year but solar is not free.If you’re able to purchase your system outright, you’ll see the highest return on investment overall.

2 - The government will send you a check for the amount of the tax credit.

The truth is that the incentives are not a rebate, but are credits towards your income tax liability. keep reading...

If you do not have an annual income tax liability, it is impossible to take advantage of the government provided incentives towards solar. The tax credits never expire, but if the tax credit is large and your annual tax liability is relatively low, it can take years to realize all of the savings. If there is doubt, you should always consult your tax professional.

3 - You’ll Never Get Another Electric Bill.

Solar will not always provide 100% of your electricity consumption. keep reading...

Even when it does, you’ll still pay the power company’s minimum connection fee.

4 - You’ll Get a Big Check Back from The Energy Company for The Energy You Overproduce.

With rare exceptions, utility companies do not write you a check. keep reading...

Instead, you accrue credit during months of overproduction that will be applied to your utility bill on cloudy months when your system may not produce sufficient electricity for your needs. If your system consistently overproduces, in most cases you are donating electricity to the utility company which is why systems should rarely be designed to overproduce.

5 - Solar Production Is Overestimated.

Many companies will say their system will produce far more than it will. keep reading...

They fail to adequately account for shading and otherwise exaggerate anticipated production numbers.

6 - Misstating Energy Efficiency Savings.

Some companies will provide minimal energy efficiency products and services, such as LED light bulbs, foil attic barrier or other insulation, programmable thermostats etc. keep reading...

Then vastly overstate the anticipated reductions in electricity usage.

7 - Failure to Disclose Financing Costs.

It is common for some companies to fail to disclose the additional loan balance and/or other costs the homeowner may incur when using solar financing. keep reading...

Although these additional costs sometimes make sense, very often they make no sense at all if the customer intends to pay the loan off early. And in all cases, the customer should have a thorough understanding of the advantages and disadvantages of every financing option.

8 - Failure to Disclose Schedule Amortization Terms.

Unscrupulous companies advertise a low payment based on the assumption that the loan will be re-amortized with an eventual down payment equal to the government tax credit. keep reading...

Solar loan re-amortization, also known as loan recasting, is a process that allows homeowners to re-amortize their solar loan without refinancing. The purpose of re-amortization is to lower monthly payments and decrease the total amount of interest paid over the life of the loan. But in many cases, it is not disclosed that in order to get the low payment advertised, the customer has to repurpose the money they would have paid in income tax and pay that same amount towards the loan amount within the first 18 months, thereby automatically resetting the amortization schedule to the low advertised payment. For customers who do not have enough tax liability to realize the entire tax credit savings within a single year, there is no way they can achieve the low payment advertised without paying money out of pocket.

9 - All Solar Panels Are the Same / All Equipment Is the Same.

Like any other product and service, there are varying levels of production capabilities, quality, and warranty.. keep reading...

Just as is true of a car, a solar panel does not equal a solar panel and all solar inverters are not created equal.

Experience the Transparency with Cenvar Solar Today!

We provide the best equipment available, REC and Enphase, the Rolls Royce of solar panels.

At Cenvar, we are open and transparent about all the issues listed above. We fully disclose all costs and help you think through how to make solar the best possible investment for your home.
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- We thoroughly explain exactly how solar tax incentives work, and make sure you get no surprises.

- We do not overestimate production, and in fact, guarantee that our system will produce what we say it will, or we will pay the difference.
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- We put you and your interests first because we understand that it is in the best long term interest of you and our company.

If after thoroughly assessing the viability of solar for your home, we find that it does not make financial sense in your application, we will be very forthright in sharing that conclusion.
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