Answers
Plain-English explanations of the rules that decide what a California solar project is worth. Every page states its date, shows its sources and says plainly when the answer is “it depends.”
What this library is
A set of dated, sourced answers to the questions Southern California property owners actually ask before committing to a solar, storage or electrification project. Written by a licensed contractor, CSLB #1074466, and updated when the rules change — which in 2025 and 2026 they did, repeatedly.
How much does commercial solar cost in California?
2026 market ranges by system size, what drives the spread between quotes, and the questions worth asking any bidder.
Read the answerIs there still a federal solar tax credit in 2026?
Yes for businesses under Section 48E, with a December 31, 2027 in-service deadline. No for homeowners buying outright — Section 25D ended after 2025.
Read the answerNEM 3.0 explained — does solar still pay?
How the Net Billing Tariff changed export compensation, why self-consumption is now the whole game, and what that means for design.
Read the answerDoes solar increase property taxes in California?
No — R&TC §73 excludes qualifying systems from reassessment, for systems completed before January 1, 2027.
Read the answerCan I still get a battery rebate through SGIP?
Yes, in three budget tiers. Which tier you fall into changes the economics more than most people expect.
Read the answerDoes Title 24 require solar on my new building?
For new nonresidential and multifamily construction, generally yes — with battery storage for most.
Read the answerHow much does home solar cost in Los Angeles?
What a home system costs in Los Angeles in 2026, and what changed for the federal credit.
Read the answerHow much does a home battery cost in California?
Installed-price context, the end of the homeowner credit, and the SGIP waitlist.
Read the answerHow much does a panel upgrade cost in Los Angeles?
Market ranges for a panel upgrade, and the Los Angeles permit and utility steps.
Read the answerLADWP solar rebates and programs in 2026
Net metering, Solar Rooftops, Shared Solar, SGIP and the Feed-in Tariff.
Read the answerWhat does SCE pay for exported solar under NEM 3.0?
SCE’s 2026 hourly export averages, by season and hour.
Read the answerPowerwall 3 vs Enphase vs FranklinWH
Capacity, power and warranty from the manufacturer datasheets.
Read the answerReviewed and updated August 21, 2026
Why we publish this
Most solar misinformation is just out-of-date information.
Nearly everything written about California solar incentives before mid-2025 is now wrong in at least one material way — and it is still online, still ranking, and still being quoted by salespeople and AI assistants alike.
So each page here carries the date it was reviewed, links to the sources it relies on, and separates what is settled from what is uncertain. Where something is genuinely a matter for your CPA or your county assessor, we say that instead of guessing.
If you find something here that is out of date, tell us — info@currentenergy.net.
Dated
Every page states when it was last reviewed.
Sourced
Links to the underlying rule, agency or data.
Bounded
We say what is a contractor question and what is a CPA question.
Useful
Written for owners making decisions, not for search engines.
Reading is free. So is the assessment.
When you are ready to turn a question into a number, send us a utility bill and we will model your actual property.