Community & shared solar
Decide how much of your subscription's savings to pass through to tenants versus retain, and see each unit's share.
Enter usage for each unit even if splitting evenly, since unit count still comes from how many rows are filled in.
How it works
Step 1
This is a business decision, not a calculation, and depends on your lease structure, local law, and what you want to offer tenants. Check whether your leases already specify anything about utility credits before deciding, and compare against the multi family cost split calculator if any units in the building are owner-occupied rather than rented.
Step 2
Usage-based splitting requires individually metered units, while an even split works for any building layout. See the for renters calculator for how tenants can evaluate an offered pass-through from their side.
Step 3
Whatever you decide, put the pass-through percentage and method in writing, either in the lease itself or a separate addendum, to avoid confusion or disputes with tenants later.
Unlike a condo or co-owned array, tenants in a rental building don't own a share of the subscription, so how savings get distributed is a landlord decision rather than a shared governance question. This gives more flexibility but also more responsibility for setting a fair and clearly communicated policy. A larger rental portfolio faces a similar allocation decision at scale, covered by the multi-building portfolio solar sizing tool.
Splitting by usage ties each tenant's share to what they actually consume, which feels fairer but requires individually metered units and more administrative tracking. An even split is simpler to run and communicate, though it can feel less fair to a tenant using significantly less electricity than their neighbors. The DSIRE database keeps the current program details, and it is worth a look before you decide.
If tenants already pay their own utilities directly, an individually-tied subscription credit typically flows to them automatically without landlord involvement. If utilities are bundled into rent, the landlord controls the subscription and decides whether and how much of the savings gets reflected back to tenants, whether through a rent adjustment or a separate credit. See the provider comparison tool when selecting the underlying subscription itself. The Department of Energy's community solar basics guide covers the underlying credit mechanism this pass-through decision is ultimately built on.
Advertising reduced utility costs can be a meaningful selling point in a competitive rental market, similar to how landlords sometimes include other utilities in rent as an amenity. Weigh the administrative cost of running a pass-through program against its value as a tenant retention or acquisition tool. Compare the underlying savings with the condo shared roof allocation calculator if your building has any owner-occupied units mixed with rentals, or the neighborhood co-op cost split tool for a broader look at shared arrangements. A landlord's cost of running this program is worth weighing against its budget impact too, covered by the monthly budget fit calculator. Check the DSIRE database for any state landlord-tenant rules on utility cost pass-through, since some jurisdictions regulate this specifically.
Questions
Yes, a landlord can subscribe using the building's master utility account or individual unit accounts, depending on how the building is metered. Whether savings pass through to tenants is entirely the landlord's decision unless a lease or local law specifies otherwise.
This depends on the lease structure and local landlord-tenant law. If tenants pay utilities directly and the subscription is tied to their individual accounts, the credit typically flows to them automatically. If the landlord pays utilities and includes them in rent, passing through savings is a discretionary landlord decision unless specified in the lease.
Splitting by each unit's actual usage is the most common approach when usage data is available, since it ties the allocation to what each unit actually consumes. An even split across all units is simpler to administer but doesn't account for differences in unit size or occupancy.
Yes, some landlords advertise reduced utility costs as an amenity to attract tenants, similar to including other utilities in rent. This can be a reasonable strategy in markets where tenants are price-sensitive to total housing cost, including utilities.