Top 10 Cities in California for Residential Solar

A news release was recently issued on California’s 10 leading residential solar cities. The information was released by solar company SunRun, citing data compiled from its PV Solar Report.

The list of top solar cities list is based on the California Solar Initiative’s (CSI) database of residential rebate reservations through August 31, 2011.

Of interest, in 70 percent of these cities the majority of homeowners chose a lease or similar options over a cash purchase, pointing toward a nationwide trend. The cities are ranked as follows:

1. San Jose
2. San Diego
3. Bakersfield
4. San Francisco
5. Fresno
6. Corona
7. Simi Valley
8. Santa Rosa
9. Murrieta
10. Lancaster

“This top cities list was designed to inform the industry, as well as demonstrate to California families that solar is affordable today,” said Stephen Torres, managing director of PV Solar Report.  He says that over the past 12 months the cost of a solar installation has dropped significantly as more homeowners select leases or power-purchase agreements to go solar.

An executive brief and comprehensive list of the top 25 cities in California from PV Solar Report is available if you want more info.

According to this news release, the CSI database includes data from the California utilities SDG&E, PG&E and SCE.

Graphic:  solarpowerforyou.