Americans want residential solar, but trust and costs are still big concerns: report

(Photo by Joe DelNero /NREL)

Americans are interested in residential solar, but many get stuck in the planning stage, get caught up on costs, or struggle to find a “trustworthy” solar company, according to a new report.

Aurora Solar, a platform for solar sales and design, announced its second annual “Solar Industry Snapshot,” which examines early 2024 U.S. residential solar trends through three data sources: Aurora’s solar projects database of more than nine million projects over the past two years; a survey of 1,000 U.S. homeowners about their solar adoption behaviors and motivations; and, a survey of 500 U.S. solar professionals on the state of the industry.

The report found that more than half of homeowners said they believe solar is a good investment. However, 75% of homeowners who do not have solar, but are interested, said overall system and installation costs are a big concern.

Notably, 15% of homeowners said they were paying for their PV system through a leasing program. In the current high-interest rate environment, we anticipate this percentage will increase as demand for leasing goes up. Education around third-party ownership could open doors for homeowners and installers to move out of the “interest stage.”

Trust, or lack of it, is another roadblock for residential solar adoption, the report found. In 2023, 22% of homeowners said they were unable to find a trustworthy solar company. In 2024, the numbers doubled: 44% of respondents said it is hard to determine which solar companies are trustworthy.

Solar professionals seemed to agree — the report says by far, the main problem solar professionals face in 2024 is homeowners being reluctant to commit to quotes (38%).

Few (10%) of homeowners had battery storage, and only 16% were familiar with the concept of energy metering. Nearly 75% of solar professionals said they have seen increased interest in solar + storage, and 38% said they felt solar is more valuable when paired with whole home electrification.

The full report is available here.