Prepping to Sell & Setting Expectations

Homeowners signing up for an Energy Plan can expect a straightforward process and consistency in their experience. As a Certified Installer selling an Energy Plan, here are the top 5 items for your homeowners to expect.

1) Qualifying

650 FICO credit requirement (No DTI)
Homeowner must be on title
Home is an approved type (in general, single family, fully owned

2) Homeowner Portal

A Homeowner Account (via app or web browser) is required on all sales
Homeowners complete stip requirements via their account
Homeowner portal link: https://home.palmetto.com/

3) Signing & Stipulations

Simple Energy Plan contract sent via Docusign [signing can also be done in the homeowner's portal]
Stipulations completed via app/account, including secure ID
ACH banking information is required on all sales (NTP requirement)

4) Billing

In most instances*, first bill will come approx. 20 days after activation
30 Day billing cycles, with 15 day payment terms
Billing details available via homeowner's portal
*system activation on or before the 10th of the month will receive billing on the 1st of the following month. System activation after the 10th of the month will be billed in a skip month example: 10/15 billed on the 12/1

5) Performance Guarantee with Protect

Includes 25 year, 90% Performance Guarantee* (*unless prohibited by state) as part of our most robust Protect package
3 Year True Ups, if necessary

	Question	Answer
1	Why do homeowners have to link their ACH/bank account?	All homeowners must link their banking info for Energy Plan payment, via our Stripe integration in their homeowner portal - https://home.palmetto.com/. This ensures secure payment information on all accounts. ACH is needed at the point of sale, as it is an NTP milestone requirement for Certified Developers.
2	What happens if payment is late? If payment is late for any reason, homeowners are given sensible leeway to re-link payment and bring their account up to date.	After 60+ Days, late fees and system deactivation may apply. In general, there are no exceptions or grants of payment deferrals. However, LightReach will do everything reasonably possible to work with homeowners in the event of extreme circumstance.
3	Lien Filings/UCC-1?	PLM files a UCC-1 fixture (lien on the equipment, but not the home itself) on all systems. This is to ensure our stake in the equipment, and is standard among industry financiers. Homeowners going through a refinance or mortgage process may have a loan officer come across the UCC-1 Lien across the solar equipment and may, incorrectly, deem that the loan is an attachment to the residence. However, it is not and should not prevent refinance. It is important to note that in many cases this is quite literally a matter of knowledge/conceptual understanding on the side of the mortgage officer. The UCC-1 lien is only a lien on the solar equipment-- it is the solar financier's stake in the equipment.
4	How are true-ups completed? What if my homeowner over-produces vs estimate?	If necessary, 3-year production true ups are completed via bill credit. Overproduce? Great! There is no penalty for overproducing. However, overproduction is 'banked' against any potential future-underproduction.
5	What happens if my customer has down time?	If necessary, 3-year production true-ups are completed via bill credit. Temporary outages such as storms, maintenance, etc are ultimately factored in at this juncture. Should an extended outage occur, LightReach will work with homeowners, if necessary, on shorter-term true-ups in extreme circumstances. However, in most cases, any 'lost' production due to downtime will simply be accounted for in routine true-ups, if necessary.
6	*Homeowner first bill?	In most instances*, first bill will come approx. 20 days after activation. However, some homeowners may not receive their first bill for up to 50 days, in some circumstances. This is due to LightReach billing cycles, which bill on the first of each month. As a result, some homeowners who are activated in the latter half of a given month may have "bonus time" before they are issued a first invoice. In general, setting expectations that a first invoice will come approximately 20 days after activation is an appropriate way to set expectations.
7	Does the Lease/PPA payment appear on the homeowner's credit?	No, the LightReach product does not report as a debt. There is no consequence to simply seeing if a homeowner is qualified.
8	Critter guards?	Critter guards are recommended for any homes with obvious risk of critter activity. Certified Installers should use best judgement to proactively install if/where it is an issue or at the request of the homeowner.