I had a couple friends that built their systems themselves. They're getting the benefits of the system. Each of them have significantly lower bills, but they have to constantly monitor the performance of the system and take care of the upkeep. V3's program takes care of all of that, so all you really need to think about is your monthly utility payments.
Purchasing only really makes sense if you have the cash and tax appetite for the tax credit of the solar system. Personally I went with the energy program because one, I don't have the income to purchase my system and two, V3 takes the monitoring and maintenance off your plate. My PGE bills have been cut to where I only need to pay a monthly connection fee and my backup batteries are keeping me covered from blackouts/outages.
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