PORTLAND, Ore. - SolarCity® has announced the availability of the first residential solar lease in Oregon. According to the company, its SolarLease® financing option will make it possible for Oregon homeowners to go solar for as little as $20 per month, with no upfront cost, and save money from day one.

The affordable new financing option was made possible by new rules published by the Oregon Department of Energy that went into effect on Jan. 1. The new rules allow customers who choose to lease their solar systems to receive the residential tax credit (RETC) that was previously only available to customers that purchased solar systems. As the customer cannot transfer the credit to SolarCity, SolarCity allows the customer to defer the remaining system cost not covered by the lease payments until the customer receives the RETC, effectively eliminating the customer’s upfront cost.

SolarCity said it will continue to provide Oregon homeowners with multiple financing options, including cash purchase, prepaid lease, and a partially prepaid lease with a lower monthly payment. All lease options include installation, SolarCity’s SolarGuard® proactive monitoring service, repairs, insurance and a performance guarantee for the life of the 15-year lease. SolarLease is available to Oregon homeowners that are also customers of Portland General Electric and Pacific Power.

“For less money each month than the cost of two movie tickets, Oregon homeowners can install solar power,” said Rob LaVigne, SolarCity’s regional director in Oregon. “Our Oregon lease option should make solar accessible to a wide range of homeowners across the state.”

For more information, visit www.solarcity.com.

Publication date: 01/24/2011