One of the best ways to make solar easier to adopt is to cut down on the lengthy process of permitting. As most solar professionals know, permitting delays can cause setbacks to project completion and lead to more cancellations.
These delays don’t just increase time to PTO, they also make solar more expensive for homeowners. As Mosaic Founder, Billy Parish, recently noted on the SunCast podcast, "The single most important thing we can do to decrease (residential solar) costs is speed up deployment."
SolarAPP+ stands for Solar Automated Permit Processing. It’s an online web portal that automates the plan review and process for issuing permits. The software is specifically designed to help governments and installers by streamlining and standardizing the solar permitting process. Mosaic is proud to be one of the founding partners collaborating to further the adoption of this software. Here are four more facts about SolarAPP+.
1. The average permit timeline with SolarAPP+ is less than one business day
- Research shows that most homeowners will wait 25–100 days from permit application until an installed system passes inspection. SolarAPP+ is an incredible timesaver for solar installers — simplifying the permitting process and helping more homeowners choose solar.
- By the numbers SolarAPP+ has issued 46,500 permits, approved 302,350 kilowatts, and saved an estimated 46,500 hours in review time.
2. SolarAPP+ can help manage workloads
- SolarAPP+ reduces permitting delays, lessening friction points for installers. Fewer delays mean less time spent explaining those delays to customers. With a shorter permitting time, homeowners can benefit from their solar systems sooner and installers can start their next project quicker.
- The software can also make the permitting department’s workload more manageable by automatically checking system designs for safety and code compliance. In 2022, the NREL estimated that over 9,900 hours of jurisdiction staff time were saved by using SolarAPP+.
3. SolarAPP+ is currently available in 346 jurisdictions
- Over 181 communities are benefitting from a streamlined permitting process, setting a future standard for nationwide use of permitting software.
- Countless more states and counties are interested in adopting the software with many professionals advocating for SolarAPP+ to their local officials.
4. You can have a huge impact on the adoption of SolarAPP+
- Solar professionals see firsthand the delays and struggles that an outdated permitting process creates, and the ways it can affect homeowners and our industry.
- Reaching out to your local public officials to advocate for the community-wide benefits of SolarAPP+ can speed up adoption, and when adopted, it can speed up permitting process times in your area.
Financing applied for and processed through the Mosaic platform is originated by Solar Mosaic LLC or one of its lending/financing partners. Equal Housing Lender