proposal/ designs
This number matters more than system wattage — because it determines how much of the customer’s bill solar will replace long-term.
What is annual kWh production (or offset %)?
This financing option is known for competitive rates, local trust branding, and strong appeal with homeowners who prefer to work with a credit union rather than a national lender.
What is Travis Credit Union financing?
Before solar can be interconnected, PG&E requires this application to be submitted with spec sheets, single-line diagrams, and system details.
What is the PG&E Interconnection Application
This roof pitch and direction combo is considered the gold standard — producing the highest annual kWh per installed watt in most U.S. locations.
What is a south-facing roof with ~20–35° pitch?
This objection usually isn’t about price — it’s about fear of commitment, uncertainty, or needing reassurance before deciding.
“I need to think about it”
If the design under-produces, oversells, or misses roof surfaces — it means the rep skipped this step: confirming shade, azimuth, and structure.
What is a site evaluation or pre-design assessment?
This popular lending platform offers flexible loan terms, fast approvals, and is widely used in residential solar for its ease of paperwork and quick funding
What is GoodLeap?
This milestone triggers when PG&E reviews and confirms the system can safely connect to the grid — without it, solar cannot be turned on.
pto
Systems installed on these two orientations often require more panels to produce the same energy, but excel in spreading generation across the day.
What are east- and west-facing arrays?
You’ll hear this when a homeowner compares multiple quotes and is stuck in research mode instead of decision mode.
shopping-around objection
A proposal is incomplete without these three financial comparison pieces: current utility cost, projected cost with solar, and system payback timeline.
What are the utility baseline, solar savings forecast, and ROI/payback estimate?
More than just a lender — this company also offers solar ownership programs but is most recognized for leases and PPAs where the customer pays for energy instead of equipment
What is Sunrun?
Customers on PG&E who go solar are required to be placed on this billing structure, which uses peak and off-peak pricing windows.
What is a Time-of-Use (TOU) rate plan?
This roof surface often requires extra labor, specialty mounts, higher install cost, and extended timeframes compared to asphalt shingle.
What is a tile roof?
This objection arises when the customer misunderstands net metering, TOU rates, bill structure, or thinks their bill will hit $0.
What is a utility bill misunderstanding objection?
Showing different equipment options — like microinverters vs string inverters, premium vs standard panels — is called this proposal upgrade strategy.
What is tiered proposal presenting or good-better-best design?
This financing provider focuses on home energy ownership — known for solar loans with options for re-amortization & monthly payment flexibility over time.
What is EverBright
This upgrade may be required before approval if the home’s meter panel lacks open busbar space or cannot accept the solar backfeed under the 120% rule.
What is a Main Panel Upgrade (MPU)?
When a roof has trees, chimneys, dormers, or other obstructions — this layout strategy is used to maintain production and reduce mismatch loss.
What is multi-plane array design / panel spreading?
This objection typically appears when panels won’t fit perfectly, there's shade, or roof work may be needed.
What is a roof/structural concern objection?
This visual model shows panel placement, shading impact, and expected annual kWh — often the homeowner’s first impression of your engineering.
What is a roof layout / array design model?
When a homeowner doesn’t want to pay cash, these four financing paths allow them to go solar with little-to-no money upfront while still saving monthly.
What are solar loans, leases, PPAs, and credit union financing?
Under PG&E’s solar export policy, credits are valued based on real-time grid conditions and hourly market pricing
What is Net Billing (NEM 3.0)?
These roofs often need reinforcement, engineering review, and careful racking to avoid wind uplift or compromising the membrane.
What are flat or low-slope roofs
This objection sounds like “It’s not a good time,” but often means the homeowner values the benefit — just isn’t convinced it’s urgent.
What is a timing objection?