Hello fellow crunchers,

I am facing a bit of a dilemma. I had a visit from Solar City the other day and I was wondering if it would be better to lease or to buy solar panels. I am interested in the leasing option. I have only recently contact the representative there so I do not have all the information yet, however I was hoping that if someone here has done either one or the other they could share some pointers or maybe pitfalls to avoid.

I do eventually want to have them, however owning it to me feels like too much of a burden (including the up front costs, trying to find government funding, and then also maintaining the solar panels). To me the leasing option, while not technically owning them, would be my preferred option. However, is leasing even a good alternative? I have read online that what leasing offers is only maybe 10% to 20% savings, and you would be paying the company that installed it for your electricity. The main benefit for me would be to increase the solar industry demand and at least pay for energy that you truly know that came from a clean source.

Your opinions on the matter would be greatly appreciated :)