I had my system put in by sunlightsolar of Waltham MA. I used them for my 18 panel roof install ( 14.6 MWH produced and counting) . i installed 10 panels, and then when they produced so much more than my 10 yr old system, i installed another 8 six months later. Sunlightsolar does a good job, and they will help if there is a later problem. I used 250 watt panels with an enphase microinverter per panel
There are substantial incentives for ownership in MA .
1) Net metering: if you produce a kwh you get paid the same as if you buy a kwh. Funds accumulate in your account, you do not get a check
2) SRECs: for each 1 MWH you produce you can sell and SREC ( currently returns ~$225/ Rec)
3) MA will pay for a portion of the capital costs on all residential installs (~15% of costs, can't remeber al the details)
4) if your house is valued at less than the median in your county, MA will pay an additional amount per watt installed ( IIRC ~ 80 cents / watt)
5) MA offers an additional tax credit (~$1k) on the installation costs
In MA the payback is more like 5-6 years. Here are the calculations presented to me in August of 2012. Two things have changed.. SRECS pay less, and panels cost less
~~~~~~~~~~ Estimate of ROI ~~~~~~~~~
Solar Panel Manufacturer Solar World
Solar Panel Model SW 250
Total Number of SunPower Solar Panels 11
Total Solar Panel Wattage (STC) 2,750
Inverter Model Enphase M215 SPR Enphase M210
Total System Cost Without Rebate $12,375
Minus Rebate (Based on Estimated Site Conditions) $2,200
Final Cost to You $10,175
Rebate Percentage of Total System Cost 17.8%
Amount Of Federal & State Tax Credit $4,053
Final Cost (after 30% Federal Tax Credit, State Tax Credit and MassCEC
Rebate) $6,123
Total Estimated Yearly Solar Kilowatt Hours Produced 3,358
Estimated Percentage of Electric Provided by Solar 155%
First Year Estimated Electricity Cost Savings in Dollars $470
First Year Estimated S-REC Income in Dollars $957
Estimated Payback Year 4 <<<<<<
Estimated 10 Year Profit $8,637
Estimated Yearly ROI 24%
Massachusetts Industry Leading Ten Year Labor Warranty
Inverter Warranty 25 Years (Enphase M215) 15 Years (Enphase M210)
Sunpower Inverter Warranty 10 Years
Panel Warranty for 25 Years
Proper Solar Panel to Inverter Design to Ensure Efficiency in High Heat and Over Time
No Exposed Roof Penetrations, High Quality Flashing Roof Penetration System
High Quality Stainless Steel and Aluminum Racking System