Dan9871, good well thought out info. Thanks.

You need a professional to answer but for a ball part figure 30 to 35,000 (before Federal Tax credit) and a breakeven between 11 or maybe 13 years to 18 years. The 18 year payback assumes the need to remove the panels when a new roof is put on and maybe some repairs. If you consider buying bonds and using the interest to pay your electric bill the solar system will probably be cheaper. Consider this a "bond" investment. You will also avoid future electric rate increases. It all depends on how you want to look at the breakeven calculation. Professionals will lean toward the 11 year end of the range.

We did get an estimate for our up north home. After tax breaks that were in effect at the time, end cost was about $19,000. We would not break even for 14.6 years. It was also suggested we go to a metal roof instead of shingles.

We passed not only due to the length of recoup time, but cost of the roof

My neighbor up in MA got solar panels a few years ago. One year the panels stopped working due to a power surge. Turns out the the reset switch was on the roof, due to requirements so that the homeowner couldn't reset it to protect power company personnel. It was a two story house with a steep roof. After some talk back and forth, they moved the reset switch to locked box where someone on the ground can get to it during the winter. I think he said his payback was about 25 years.

Installing a solar system on the roof doesn't sound like a good deal to me. And, I sure wouldn't trust the contractor to calculate the payback time. Also, how does this affect the resale value of the house? I would not buy a house that had solar panels on the roof, unless the majority of the houses in the area also had them.