LightReach Energy Plans (PPAs and Leases) let you benefit from the electricity produced by solar panels on your roof, while Palmetto owns, installs, and maintains the solar panels for you.

Every LightReach energy plan is custom-designed, based on the specifics of your home, location, electricity needs, and rates. In this way, your average monthly LightReach payment is lower than your average monthly electricity savings for most customers, so you can start saving money in the first year your system is activated.

Today, LightReach offers third-party owned PPAs and Leases for solar & storage systems. HVAC leasing for heat pumps is ramping up. In Texas, LightReach has a Retail Energy Plan with a SolarBuyback rate for retail choice customers.

Both are third-party owned solar system agreements. From your perspective, they function similarly. Whether LightReach offers a PPA or Lease in your area typically depends on state laws and regulations.

As a homeowner, the best solar investment is the one that's tailored to your home, energy needs, and financial goals. Every home and homeowner is unique. LightReach makes solar more accessible with:

Compare your options here: Solar Buy or Lease Guide

The best solar solution is the one that fits your unique situation, taking into account your home energy usage and financial goals.

If you're looking for immediate savings with no upfront cost, a LightReach Lease or Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) could be the right choice. You pay $0 down and make predictable monthly payments based on estimated solar production, all backed by a performance and production guarantee. Leases and PPAs are also a great fit if you don’t have enough tax liability to take advantage of solar tax credits.

If long-term savings and system ownership are your priorities, a cash purchase may offer the greatest financial return over time. You'll own the system outright, qualify for available tax incentives, and typically see the biggest lifetime savings. However, the return on investment may take 10–15 years (or longer), depending on your upfront cost and how much you save on electricity over time.

Solar loans offer another path to ownership with little to no upfront cost. However, with current interest rates, loan-based savings may be harder to realize—one reason many customers are opting for Leases or PPAs instead.

Want a side-by-side comparison? Explore your options here.

With a LightReach Energy Plan (PPA or a lease), you'll have a predictable monthly payment based on estimated production and a 90% production guarantee. For most of our customers, this means you could start seeing savings on your electricity bill within the first year.

It's important to know that while we guarantee how much energy your LightReach system will produce, your exact electricity bill savings can vary. Dive deeper into this topic at How to Understand Solar Energy Savings.

Yes. You will receive two bills:

You'll remain connected to the grid and a utility customer, even with solar. Most solar users still purchase some electricity from their local utility. Even in months where solar produces 100% of electricity needs, customers will still owe the utility’s base customer fees. All utilities are different, and their customer fees and net metering policies vary. Please consult your local utility for details. Learn more at How to Read Your Electric Bill with Solar

Live in Texas? Explore Palmetto's Retail Electricity Plan.

Even with solar, you'll still be connected to the main power grid and remain a customer of your utility company. Most solar users will still need to buy some electricity from the grid, especially at night or on cloudy days. You'll also likely still owe the utility's basic monthly fees and taxes, even in months with high solar production. Keep in mind that every utility company has different rules for these fees and for how they handle solar power, so it's a good idea to check with your local utility for the specific details of your billing.

When you get your new electricity bill with solar, you'll often see terms like kWh Delivered (electricity you used from the grid), Received/Exported (extra solar power sent back to the grid), and Net Usage (the difference between what you used and what your solar produced). Most utility bills won't show the total amount of power your solar panels produced, so you'll use your Palmetto account or app for that.

Every kilowatt-hour (kWh) your solar system produces helps lower your bill by offsetting the electricity you would have otherwise bought. If your panels make less power than you use, you simply draw the extra you need from the grid. When your panels make more power than you're using, the extra goes back to the grid for others to use in your community. The value of the credit depends on your utility’s net metering policy and rate structure.

Learn more - How to Read Your Electric Bill with Solar Palmetto's Retail Electricity Plan.

Your utility bill helps us determine the best system for your energy needs. It also tells us about your utility provider so we can confirm rates, account and meter numbers, policies, and incentives in your area.

One of the most valuable benefits of solar is the insulation from unpredictable utility rate increases. With solar you’ve locked in energy production at a known price. LightReach’s Energy Plan (PPA or Lease) provides a fixed, predictable cost of electricity for the duration of the agreement. Your agreement has an annual escalation rate of 0-3.5%, which means the payments will rise at the pre-determined rate per year. This is often lower than projected utility price increases. Regardless of how much your solar system produces, you will still have a utility bill for electricity your system does not provide including base utility charges. The leftover utility bill charges will grow over time with inflation and utility price increases.

The most likely reason you may not see a significant reduction in your utility bill yet is seasonality. Consider what month your solar system turned on after receiving Permission to Operate from your utility. Solar production is seasonal, with the longest and sunniest days generally occurring from spring through early fall, leading to higher energy production compared to the shorter, less intense sunlight of winter. If your system was recently turned on in the winter, then you may not see a big reduction to your electric bill yet. LightReach charges predictable monthly payments, which is the same amount per month based on the expected annual production. Your solar system's production follows a bell curve, with higher output in the warmer, sunnier months and lower output in the winter, while your LightReach payments remain consistent. Rest assured, as the days get longer and sunnier, your system is likely to produce more energy, helping you see a greater impact on your monthly electric bill.

In addition, please be aware of your energy usage. Your LightReach solar system is estimated to produce a set amount of electricity each year. Any extra electricity you use in your home, beyond what your solar system produces, will be billed by your utility. The more electricity you consume, the higher your utility bill will be. You can also monitor your solar production through your online dashboard to ensure your system is performing as expected.

Learn more about factors affecting solar production and your LightReach bill.

Yes, LightReach customers will have a fixed monthly payment with an annual rate escalator based on estimated production. The production is trued up, or credited to you, every 3 years if the 90% performance guarantee is not met.

Learn more at Understanding Your Solar Performance Guarantee.

No. Because you're enjoying the benefits of solar power through a LightReach plan without owning the system itself, you will not be able to collect the solar tax incentives. However, every LightReach energy plan is custom-designed, based on the specifics of your home, location, electricity needs, and rates. This personalized approach means that for most of our customers, your average monthly LightReach payment is actually lower than what you were typically paying for electricity. This results in savings, even without the tax incentives.

Download the Palmetto App. In your LightReach Account or mobile app, use the Dashboard to monitor how much solar energy your system is producing (Production) and how much energy your household is using (Consumption) - by day, week, or month. Read more about Production vs Consumption here.

The chart in your Palmetto dashboard makes it easy to see variations, track averages, and monitor the performance of your solar energy system. To show or hide Production, Consumption, Temperature, or Cloud Cover, tap the buttons below on the chart. For more details on how to read the Dashboard, select the "About this data" link below the chart and buttons.

Yes! LightReach offers battery storage options that work seamlessly with our solar systems. To ensure everything runs smoothly and to protect your system's warranty, batteries that were not provided by LightReach cannot be connected to your system. Modifying or tampering with your LightReach system may void your agreement's warranties.

Yes! Your LightReach Energy Plan comes with 25 years of protection bundled in. This eliminates out-of-pocket expenses for repairs and maintenance, including labor. If your panels have experienced damage, please use this link to request service.

When you choose the LightReach Energy Plan, you’ll be provided with a 90% Performance & Production Guarantee. This includes proactive monitoring, troubleshooting, remote diagnostics, labor, 90% production guarantee, equipment replacement and more covered for the term of the solar energy plan, eliminating out-of-pocket expenses for repairs and maintenance, including labor. Understanding Your Solar Performance Guarantee

There’s no one size fits all solar system. Everyone has different historical electricity consumption, and plans for the future. You can look at your last 12 months of usage from electric bills, and compare that to the estimated production on the LightReach agreement. LightReach provides a 90% production guarantee reviewed every three years so you can be confident in our estimate. Traditionally, the goal of a solar system size is to produce annually as close as possible to the same number of kilowatt-hours (kWh) you consume. If the system produces 10,000 kWh in the first year and you consume 10,000 kWh, then that’s a 100% offset.

Many homeowners strive for a 100% usage offset especially if your utility offers a 1-to-1 net metering credit. However, 100% offset is a starting point; not a perfect formula.

Learn more at How many solar panels do I need?

If you want to make any repairs or improvements to the Property that could interfere with the System (such as repair the roof where the System is located), you may only remove and replace the System at your own cost and pursuant to the Limited Warranty.

You can easily do this in your Palmetto Account and app. This Billing Support article will walk you through how to make the change.

You can change your email and password in your Palmetto account or app. If you need to reset your password, you can click the don't remember your password link on the login screen. If you don't remember what email you used or are still having trouble, please contact our Customer Experience Team.

Yes! You can buyout or “payoff” the system anytime after the fifth anniversary of your system interconnection date. Explore your options here.

When you decide to sell your home, you have two main choices regarding your LightReach Lease or Power Purchase Agreement (PPA):

Regardless of the option you choose, please contact us at least 60 days before the closing date of your home sale. Learn more about selling your home.

See this page for a complete explanation.
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