Why Did My Solar Loan Payment Suddenly Jump?

If your solar loan payment was manageable for the first 16 to 18 months and then suddenly jumped, you didn't do anything wrong — and the loan isn't broken. That jump is built into how many solar loans are designed.

The tax-credit balloon, explained

Many solar loans from GoodLeap, Mosaic, Sunlight, and others assume you will make a large 'voluntary' prepayment — usually around 30% of the loan, the amount of the federal tax credit — within the first year and a half. If you make that prepayment, your monthly payment stays low. If you don't, the loan re-amortizes over the remaining term and the monthly payment jumps, sometimes by a lot.

The catch: many homeowners were never clearly told this, and many never actually received a 30% tax credit they could use — so the prepayment they were counting on never existed.

What to do

• Pull your loan agreement and look for the assumed prepayment / re-amortization language.
• If you were never told about it, or couldn't claim the tax credit you were promised, document that.
• Dispute it in writing with your lender and consider a Holder Rule and TILA-disclosure claim with an attorney.

General information, not legal advice.