Why Your Solar Installer Is Not Your Advisor

This is the most important thing to understand before you start talking to solar companies: every installer you speak with is a salesperson. That's not a criticism — it's simply how the industry works. And understanding it is the first step toward protecting yourself.

The Structural Conflict of Interest

Solar installers make money by selling and installing solar systems. Their revenue depends on closing deals. This creates a structural conflict of interest that affects every piece of advice they give you — not because they're dishonest, but because their financial incentives point in a specific direction.

When an installer tells you that solar makes sense for your property, they may be right. But they have no financial incentive to tell you it doesn't make sense, or that you should wait, or that a competitor's proposal is better. An independent advisor does.

What Installers Won't Tell You

In our experience reviewing hundreds of installer proposals, here are the things that rarely come up unless you ask:

• That the system is larger than your load profile justifies
• That NEM 3.0 significantly changes the payback calculation
• That a competitor's proposal is better value for the same system
• That the financing terms they're offering are unfavorable
• That you should wait for SGIP funding to open before proceeding
• That the roof needs work before solar installation
• That the interconnection timeline is 6–9 months, not 6–8 weeks

The Analogy That Makes It Clear

Imagine hiring a contractor to tell you whether you need a new roof. The contractor makes money by installing roofs. They might give you an honest assessment — but you'd be wise to get a second opinion from someone who has no financial stake in the answer.

Solar is the same. The installer's job is to sell you a system. An independent consultant's job is to tell you whether you should buy one, what it should cost, and whether the proposal in front of you is any good.

What Independent Consulting Actually Costs

For most commercial and institutional projects, independent consulting fees are a small fraction of the project cost — and the savings from better procurement, correctly sized systems, and avoided mistakes typically exceed the consulting fee by a significant margin. Our clients consistently save 10–30% versus going direct to installers.