The Solar Industry Has an Honesty Problem

I work in residential solar operations — not sales, but the post-sale machinery. Permitting, installation coordination, inspections, and utility interconnection. The stuff that happens after the sales rep shakes your hand and disappears.

I've touched thousands of residential solar projects. Seen them go right and seen them go sideways. I've dispatched crews, resolved permitting delays, explained to homeowners why their permission to operate is taking six weeks instead of two, and occasionally talked someone out of a system that doesn't make sense for their roof.

I've worked with every ownership path — cash purchases, solar loans, TPO leases and PPAs. I know how financing type changes everything: timelines, paperwork, what can go wrong, and who you call when it does.

Here's what I see every day: sales reps who are scripted, often new, and don't understand what happens after you sign. They hand off your project and hope it works out. The industry calls this the “sell and forget” culture, and it's structural — not just a few bad actors.

I got tired of watching homeowners get blindsided by things that are completely predictable — if someone just tells you upfront. The timeline surprises. The paperwork nobody mentioned. The promises that didn't quite make it into the contract.

I've seen the top broken sales promises: free main service panel upgrades, free future roof replacements, free EV charger installs, cash concessions that vanish, free batteries. If it's not in the contract, it doesn't exist. Full stop.

Meanwhile, 15–20% of projects hit roof issues that nobody mentioned during the sales pitch. Jurisdiction politics are real — cities and utilities deliberately slow-walk permits, and installers get punished for following up too much. Equipment substitution happens — supply chain issues mean your system might not be what you signed up for. And the trend toward requiring more homeowner involvement keeps growing: e-signatures, on-site inspections, calling your utility directly.

The residential tax credit expired December 31, 2025. In 2026, TPO leases and PPAs make up the majority of new installs. The buy-versus-lease decision has fundamentally changed, and most of what you'll find online hasn't caught up.

Solar is a great investment for a lot of homeowners. Genuinely. But the process of going solar? That part could use some honesty.