Guide · Updated October 2026

Solar Financing Options Guide (2026)

Cash, a solar loan, a HELOC, a home equity loan, PACE or a lease: what each one depends on, how to read a loan quote, and where some well-known lenders stand today. This is a guide, not a marketplace. We are not a lender, we show no offers or rates, and we take no applications.

Updated October 2026No federal homeowner credit countedNo offers, no rankings

Short answer

The ways to pay for solar differ in who you owe, what is at stake if you cannot pay, and what the quote hides. The single most useful habit is to ask the installer for two prices in writing, on the same day: the cash price and the price on the loan quote. A US Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) study in 2024 found that many solar loans carry a dealer or program fee, described as about 10% to 30% of the cash price, built into the financed price and often left out of the stated rate.

That means a low rate, or even 0%, tells you little on its own. Compare the total you will pay across the loan with the cash price. The small tool below does that for the price gap. The tables after it show what each way of paying depends on, and the status of some well-known lenders, because several have changed or closed.

These are not offers. Fields marked EXAMPLE are placeholders, not market rates or lender terms. Replace them with the figures on your own written quotes.

Cash price vs the price on the loan quote

Both from the installer, in writing. If they are the same, the gap is zero.

EXAMPLE: use the cash price from your quote
EXAMPLE: the price the loan finances. It can be higher than the cash price.
EXAMPLE rate, not a market rate or an offer. Use your quote.
EXAMPLE term. Use your quote.
Example inputs

Calculating... price gap

If you borrow the whole priceAmount

    Arithmetic on the numbers you type in. Not an offer, a quote or a credit decision. For the full cost of a loan, with a down payment and fee, use the payment calculator.

    The ways to pay for solar

    Way of payingHow it worksHome at risk?Ask / try
    CashYou pay the cash price. No interest. It is also your benchmark: every financed quote can be compared with it.NoROI calculator
    Solar loanA loan arranged for the purchase. The CFPB found terms of 8 to 25 years in its 2024 review, and that secured loans usually carry a lower APR than comparable unsecured ones. Fees may be built into the financed price.Usually not. Ask whether it is secured, and by what.Payment calculator
    HELOCA line of credit secured by your home, usually at a variable rate, often with an interest-only draw period and then a repayment period when the payment can jump.YesHome equity calculator
    Home equity loanA lump sum secured by your home, normally repaid in level payments, usually at a fixed rate. Fees such as appraisal and closing costs may be charged.YesHome equity calculator
    PACERepaid as an assessment on your property tax bill, and it stays attached to the property. A federal rule effective March 1, 2026 treats it as credit with an ability-to-repay check. Only where a local program covers solar. The Federal Housing Finance Agency has said Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will not buy a mortgage on a property with a first-lien PACE assessment, which can affect a sale or refinance.Yes: a lien, collected with property taxesThe program's written assessment schedule
    Lease or PPANo loan: a company owns the system and you pay a monthly amount or a price per kWh. The terms, any yearly increase and the end-of-term options are in the contract.Ask about any lien or filing on the homeLease vs buy calculator

    How much you could borrow, and on what terms, is for each lender to decide after looking at your file. Our affordability check shows how a new payment changes your debt-to-income ratio, and nothing more.

    Cash price and financed price

    A single sale price for equipment can become two prices when financing is added. The CFPB reported that a fee charged to the installer by the lender or program can be passed on by building it into the price the loan finances, instead of showing it separately, and that it is frequently left out of the stated APR. In a separate dataset, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory found 2024 median installed prices of $3.50 per watt for systems paid in cash and $4.70 per watt for loan-financed systems. That $1.20 gap is not all fee: the systems and buyers differ, and only about 45% of the sample could be classified by payment type.

    For you, the useful question is simple: what does the loan cost me in total, compared with the cash price? Add the down payment and every payment, subtract the cash price, and the difference is what the financing costs, whatever name each part has. The payment calculator does exactly that.

    Ask for these in writing before you sign anything. The cash price and the loan price, on the same day. The interest rate and the APR. Every fee, and who receives it. Whether the payment steps up later. Whether you can repay early without a penalty. Whether the loan is secured, and by what. What happens to the loan if the installer closes. In California the state utilities commission's guide says you have at least three business days to cancel a solar contract, five if you are 65 or older; other states differ.

    Where some well-known lenders stand (checked October 2026)

    Alphabetical, not a ranking, not a recommendation and not a list of partners. SolarNiverse has no agreement with any company named here, and takes no payment from them. Each row states what we could confirm, with the source and its date. UNVERIFIED means we could not confirm it and you should not assume it. Statuses change: check the company directly.

    CompanyWhat we could confirmSource dateSource
    Dividend Finance Acquired by Fifth Third Bank; Fifth Third still names it in 2026. Which solar products it offers now, and where: UNVERIFIED. Acquisition completed May 10, 2022 Fifth Third announcement
    GoodLeap Operating: its own newsroom lists a securitization on October 2, 2026. Which loans are available where: UNVERIFIED. Loanpal is its former name (rebranded in 2021), not a separate lender. October 2, 2026 GoodLeap newsroom
    Mosaic (Solar Mosaic) Chapter 11 plan confirmed. A federal appeals court memorandum records Mosaic's March 2026 statement that it "cannot lawfully continue as an operating business". Treat it as winding down, not as a source of new loans. The exact present stage is UNVERIFIED. If you already have a Mosaic loan, ask who services it now. June 30, 2026 Ninth Circuit memorandum
    Palmetto / LightReach Operating. LightReach is a Palmetto-owned lease or PPA subscription, not a homeowner loan. 2026 pages, checked October 9, 2026 Palmetto LightReach page
    Service Finance Company Acquired by Truist in December 2021; a bank regulator report describes a home-improvement loan operation. Whether it makes new solar loans now, and where: UNVERIFIED. April 10, 2023 Truist CRA performance evaluation
    Sunlight Financial Filed Chapter 11 in October 2023; the plan took effect on December 6, 2023 with an investor acquisition and reorganization. Whether it makes new solar loans now: UNVERIFIED. December 7, 2023 SEC Form 8-K
    Sunnova The parent company and subsidiaries filed Chapter 11 on June 8, 2025, and asset sales went into the court sale process (details: UNVERIFIED). Any new offering: UNVERIFIED. Do not assume a bankruptcy cancels an existing loan or lease: find out who now owns and services yours. June 8, 2025 SEC Form 8-K
    Sunrun Operating public company with a 2026 SEC filing. Exactly which loan products it offers where: UNVERIFIED. August 3, 2026 SEC filing index

    Enforcement is a separate question. In 2026 the New York Attorney General sued a home solar company and several lenders, alleging hidden fees and misleading sales; those are allegations, not findings (press release). Our installer directory lists installers the same way: alphabetical, with a source for each fact.

    The federal credit

    The Section 25D homeowner credit is not allowed for expenditures made after December 31, 2025. For solar, an expenditure counts as made when the installation is finished, so paying earlier does not help if the system is completed later. Nothing on this page counts a federal credit. Whether interest on a loan secured by your home is deductible is a question for a tax professional (IRS Publication 936).

    How the price-gap tool works

    • Gap is the price on the loan quote minus the cash price, shown in dollars and as a share of the cash price.
    • Payments use the standard level-payment formula on each price, borrowing the whole amount at the rate and term you enter. The difference is what the gap costs each month and over the whole loan, interest included.
    • The tool does not know about a down payment, a fee added to the balance, your credit, or a rate that changes. For those, use the payment calculator.

    Frequently asked questions

    Why can a solar loan cost more than the cash price plus interest?

    The US Consumer Financial Protection Bureau found in 2024 that many solar loans include a dealer or program fee, which it described as roughly 10% to 30% of the cash price, built into the financed price instead of shown separately, and often left out of the stated rate. Ask for the cash price and the loan price in writing, on the same day.

    Is a low or 0% solar loan rate a good deal?

    Not by itself. A low stated rate can come with a higher financed price, so compare the total you will pay across the whole loan against the cash price, not only the rate.

    What is the difference between a solar loan and a HELOC?

    A solar loan is arranged for the purchase, and may be unsecured or secured by the equipment. A HELOC is a variable-rate line of credit secured by your home, so the home is at risk if you cannot pay.

    What is PACE financing?

    Property Assessed Clean Energy financing is repaid through an assessment added to your property tax bill, and it stays attached to the property. A federal rule effective March 1, 2026 treats it as credit with an ability-to-repay requirement. It is available only where a local program covers solar, and it can complicate selling or refinancing.

    Is there a federal tax credit that lowers the cost of financing solar?

    Not for homeowners who buy their system. The Section 25D credit is not allowed for expenditures made after December 31, 2025, and for solar that means installation completed after that date.

    Does SolarNiverse recommend or rank lenders?

    No. This page lists the status of some well-known companies in alphabetical order with a dated source for each, as information, not as a ranking, recommendation or offer. SolarNiverse is not a lender and takes no applications.