Honest answers. No pressure.

A solar provider installs and owns the equipment on your roof for free, then sells you the electricity it makes, at a rate lower than your utility, locked in for 25 years. You don't buy the panels. You buy the power.

After the discovery call, we send a one-click link to securely pull your full 12 months of usage history directly from your utility (we use UtilityAPI, an authorized industry-standard service). No paperwork. That data feeds into professional design software so the system gets sized to your actual consumption, not a generic estimate.

Most solar reps work from a single bill. Real 12-month data captures seasonal swings, EV charging patterns, and the times of day power costs more (TOU windows). Everything that determines whether the system is sized right for the next 25 years. Once the design is built, your specific numbers show up in the proposal we send you.

The 30% federal residential solar tax credit ended December 31, 2025. Homeowners who buy outright in 2026 get nothing federal, which has shifted the math significantly toward agreement-based deals.

As of 2026, the commercial version of the credit is still in effect through 2027. The energy company that owns the panels claims it, and passes the savings through as a lower monthly rate. That's why current deals favor this structure.

The agreement transfers with the home. The energy company handles all the transfer paperwork — you and your real estate agent don't chase any of it. We also provide a one-page summary you can hand to a buyer or their agent that lays out the rate and terms they'd be inheriting. For most buyers, locked-in electricity at less than utility rates is a selling point.

California law gives you a 5-day cancellation window after signing. We give you the entire pre-install period (usually weeks) to change your mind, no questions asked, no penalties.

The energy company owns the equipment, so they pay for it. They make their money back through your monthly power payment, which is still less than what you'd be paying your utility.

Your locked-in rate goes up by a small fixed percentage each year, written into the contract. Utility rates have historically risen far faster (PG&E by 86% in just five years), which is why the gap widens in your favor every year.

Yes, usually a much smaller one. There's a service charge for being grid-connected, plus any power you draw outside production hours. Your savings include both bills, not just your locked-in rate.

These programs run a soft credit check during qualification, which doesn't affect your score. The most common floor across our partners is around 650 FICO, and some programs accept lower. We'd rather check first than tell you a number that turns out not to apply to your situation.

Tier-1 panels only, all-black. Enphase microinverters, the industry's highest tier. Tesla Powerwall 3 or Franklin aPower 2 batteries when you want backup. No equipment we wouldn't put on our own homes.

Not strictly. Solar without battery still saves money. A battery adds backup during outages and lets you use solar production at night. Whether it pencils depends on your usage and how your utility credits the power you send back to the grid (commonly called "net metering").

One call from you. The energy company owns the system and handles parts, labor, and warranty for the full 25 years.

Six to ten weeks from discovery call to power-on. Most of that is permits and utility coordination, which we handle. The actual install is 1–2 days.

Properly installed solar protects the roof underneath. Continuum's mounts are flashed and sealed to roofing-industry standards, with a 25-year workmanship warranty.

The site survey will tell us. If your roof has less than 5 years left, we'll tell you straight that solar doesn't make sense yet. We won't put a 25-year system on a 10-year roof.

California's Solar Rights Act limits what HOAs can require, and Continuum handles HOA approval as part of the permit packet. Continuum has navigated HOA approval in most master-planned communities across the region.

You typically have three options: extend the agreement at the same or a renegotiated rate, buy the system outright at fair market value, or have it removed at no cost to you. Specifics are in the contract you'll review before signing.

This is exactly why we size systems with a buffer above current usage. We design for where most homes are headed in 5–10 years (EVs, heat pumps, household growth), not just today.

These contracts are bundled and sold to large financial institutions, kind of like how a mortgage gets bundled and resold. If the original company exits, your contractual rate and terms transfer to the new operator. The service experience may change hands, but the financial agreement you signed is binding on whoever holds the contract.

Yes, free for you. We're paid by the install partner when a project closes. Same as a mortgage broker is paid by lenders. Our incentive is to send well-fitted projects, because that's what installers actually pay for.

Same reason you'd use a mortgage broker instead of going to one bank. We shop the whole market for you. Multiple energy companies, multiple equipment options. And if your home doesn't qualify, we tell you. An installer's sales rep, paid to close, has every reason not to.

No. The Sun Broker, Inc. is independent. Continuum is our preferred install partner across NorCal. We vetted every major installer in the region for two years before choosing them.

Yes. A meaningful share of our business comes from realtor and loan officer referrals. We're built for it: our founder holds a California real estate license and a mortgage broker license, so we speak both worlds fluently. If you're a professional looking to refer clients, see the partners page for how the relationship works.