Rent to own solar: pay it off, then it's yours
Rent to own means a solar system on your roof or your site now. You pay it off in monthly instalments over an agreed term, without paying the full price upfront. Once every instalment is paid, the system is yours outright. That's the one detail that separates it from a lease or a PPA: with rent to own, ownership is the point of the agreement, not a maybe.
Start my free energy assessmentWant solar without paying the full price upfront, but not sure you will end up owning it?
Rent to own, lease, PPA, wheeling: in South Africa these words get used as if they mean the same thing. They don't, and the differences matter to your pocket for years. Before you sign anything, ask one question: do you end up owning the system?
Get that answer first, and the rest of the decision gets a lot simpler. This page sets out how rent to own works, how it compares to the alternatives, and what to check before you sign, whether you're weighing this up for a home or for a business site. We believe you should know who owns the system before you sign anything.
We help homes and businesses own their solar system without paying for it all at once.
Paying for years and ending up owning nothing is a real worry. With rent to own, every instalment brings you closer to owning the system, and the funder only holds it as security until the last payment.
We size every system to your real use, from a family home with a 16 kW inverter, a 12 kWh battery and 27 x 600 W panels (16.2 kWp), to EFJS Printing's 30 kW FoxESS system, which paid back its investment in 2.5 years. We apply to the funder, handle your CoC and SSEG application, and every inverter and battery carries our 10-year swap-out warranty.
And we can do the same for you.
What you get with a ZenSolar rent to own agreement
| What you get | What it means for you |
|---|---|
| Own it at the end | Homes usually run 6 to 16 kW. Businesses run from about 30 kW up to 300 kW, with bigger sites quoted individually. With every instalment paid, the system is yours outright, which means no more instalments for the hardware. |
| Sleep easy on the kit | Every system we fit carries our 10-year swap-out warranty on the inverter and battery, which means a failed part is swapped out. |
| No paperwork headaches | Certificate of Compliance and SSEG application handled for you, with SSEG fees and meter costs included in our quotes, which means no surprise compliance cost. |
| Protect your roof | Mounting designed to protect your roof warranty, with a structural engineer's sign-off on every job, which means your roof is checked before the job goes ahead. |
| Built around your use | Designed around your actual use, which means you pay for the system you need, not a generic package. |
| Know how it performs | The owner gets pop-up alerts in the app, which means you can see how your system is performing without checking in constantly. |
How long is the term?
Terms run from 3 years, then 4, 5, 6 or 7 years, up to 15 years. Which term you get depends on the size of the deal and your company's history. For a home, the term also depends on the deal and the funder's own check, so there's no single number we can quote in advance. For indicative monthly plans on a home system, see the residential page. A shorter term usually means higher monthly payments and owning the system sooner. A longer term usually means lower monthly payments over more months, and more paid in total. Ask for both before you choose.
What about when the battery wears out during the term?
It's a fair question to ask before you sign a multi-year agreement, and here's the honest answer. Every system we fit carries our 10-year swap-out warranty on the inverter and battery. Terms start from 3 years, so your agreement length can match the kit you're financing. You are not locked into a term that runs longer than makes sense for the equipment. Ask us how your proposed term lines up against the warranty before you sign, it's a question worth a straight answer.
Rent to own vs lease vs PPA vs cash
This table agrees with the fuller comparison on our finance hub. See our finance page for the full four-way breakdown, and our PPA page for more on how a PPA works for a business.
| Rent to own | Lease | PPA (business only) | Cash | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| You pay for | The system, in instalments | The use of the system | The solar power you use, per kWh, the price goes up each year | The whole system, upfront |
| Who owns it during the term | The funder, until the last payment | The funder | The funder | You |
| Do you own it at the end? | Yes | Possible with some funders, not with others | Buyout or ownership depends on the funder | You already own it |
| Who claims Section 12B | Depends on how the agreement is written, ask your tax adviser | Not you, you do not own it, ask your tax adviser | Normally the funder, not you, ask your tax adviser | You can normally claim it, ask your tax adviser |
| Term | 3 up to 15 years | Set in the agreement | Usually 10 years or more, can be shorter | None |
Rent to own is the only one of the four built around ownership. You buy the system on an instalment plan. The funder holds ownership only as security, until the debt is settled.
A lease is a rental arrangement. You pay to use the system for the term, and the funder keeps ownership. Some lease agreements include a buyout at the end; some don't. It depends on the funder and the specific terms written into that agreement, not on a rule that applies to every lease the same way.
A PPA works differently again, and it's a business-only option. You never own the system. The funder owns the equipment, and you buy the electricity it produces. There's no ownership question at the end of a PPA, because ownership was never on the table.
Wheeling is a different thing again: it moves solar power to your meter over the existing grid, rather than putting a system on your own roof or site. It isn't a finance product for equipment you host. See our wheeling page if that's closer to what you're after.
What you need to qualify
The funder runs its own check before it approves a rent to own agreement, the same way most instalment finance works. Your property or site also gets assessed: enough usable roof or ground space, a structural engineer's sign-off, and a distribution board the system can connect to. We size the system and the agreement around your actual electricity use and budget, not a generic quote. That means the numbers you're qualifying against are built around your own site from the start.
Questions to ask before you sign
A good rent to own agreement should hold up to these questions. If a provider can't answer them plainly, keep asking before you sign anything.
Comparing two offers side by side
A low monthly amount does not tell you the total. Ask each provider to price the same system and the same installation work, then line up these four things:
If an answer is missing, ask for it in writing before you compare. A quote that leaves out an item is not a fair comparison until you add it back.
Is rent to own right for you?
Rent to own suits one goal: ending up owning the system, without paying for it all at once. It fits you if owning the asset matters more than swapping for new equipment later. It also fits a household or business that sees solar as a long term fixture, not a quick fix. You would rather see each payment build toward ownership than pay forever with nothing to show for it. Want to upgrade equipment every few years, or avoid owning hardware at all? A lease or a PPA solve a different problem. Neither one is worse, just different.
From first call to switch-on
1
Book your free energy assessment
We review your bill and, for business sites, your demand charges. Bigger sites can get on-site logging, with the logger staying for 1 to 2 weeks to capture real usage.
2
Report, funder approval, and design
About 1 to 2 weeks after the assessment, you get a PDF report plus a walk-through: recommended system size, equipment list, and payback time. The funder checks and approves your application. We design the system around your real use, with a structural engineer's sign-off, and you sign the agreement that sets out your monthly payment, the term, and that the system is yours once every instalment is paid.
3
Install, CoC and SSEG, and switch on
Your system is installed by our team and preferred, vetted installers approved by the brands. We handle the Certificate of Compliance and the SSEG application for you, with SSEG fees and meter costs included in our quotes. Once you're live, you get pop-up notifications in the app, and each instalment builds toward owning the system.
First call to switch-on usually takes about 1 to 3 weeks in total, depending on approvals, paperwork and the size of the system.
Why look at rent to own with ZenSolar
With us
- A system sized to your real use, not a fixed package
- Terms from 3 up to 15 years, matched to your deal and the kit
- A 10-year swap-out warranty on the inverter and battery
- CoC and SSEG application handled, fees included in the quote
- A structural engineer's sign-off on every job
With them
- A generic package regardless of your actual use
- One term offered, whether or not it suits the kit
- No clear warranty behind the hardware
- Paperwork and fees left for you to chase
- No structural sign-off mentioned
Frequently asked questions
It's a way to get a solar system installed and running now, then pay it off through monthly instalments over an agreed term. Once every instalment is paid, the system belongs to you outright.
No. With rent to own, you end up owning the system once the term is complete. With a lease, you're paying for the use of the system, and ownership at the end is possible with some funders, not with others.
With a PPA, you never own the system, you only ever pay for the solar power it produces, and that price goes up each year. With rent to own, you're paying off the system itself, and it becomes yours once the final instalment is made.
From 3 years, then 4, 5, 6 or 7 years, up to 15 years. The term you get depends on the size of the deal and your company's history.
Yes. Once every payment under the agreement has been made, the system is yours, with no more instalments for the hardware.
Yes. Businesses from about 30 kW up to 300 kW can use rent to own, and bigger sites are quoted individually. Homes usually run 6 to 16 kW. The agreement structure is the same either way, sized to the site.
FoxESS and Sigenergy. Both carry our 10-year swap-out warranty on the inverter and battery.
Every system we fit carries our 10-year swap-out warranty on the inverter and battery. Terms start from 3 years, so the length of your agreement can be matched to the kit.
It depends on the funder and how your agreement is written. Ask about this before you sign, not after.
It depends on how your rent to own agreement is structured. Ask your tax adviser how it applies to your specific contract.
No. That rebate applied only to panels first brought into use between 1 March 2023 and 29 February 2024, and it has since closed. It doesn't apply to a new installation now, under rent to own or any other route.
The funder does its own check before approving any agreement, in the same way most instalment finance works. This applies to both a home application and a business application.
With a bank loan you own the system from day one and pay the bank back. With rent to own, the funder owns the system until your last instalment, then it is yours. Compare the total you will pay, whether the rate is fixed or linked to prime, and who looks after the system during the term. We can show you both side by side.
Be careful of any offer that says no credit check. The funder runs its own check before it approves an agreement, the same way most instalment finance works. Book a free energy assessment and we will tell you what fits your site and budget.
Speak to your landlord first. A solar system is fixed to the roof and the distribution board, so the property owner has to agree in writing before anything is installed. If they agree, rent to own can work with no big payment upfront.
No. A solar subscription is like a lease: you pay each month to use the system and you never own it. With rent to own, every payment goes toward owning the system, and it is yours at the end of the term.
It depends on the funder and how your agreement is written. Ask about the grace period, late fees and what steps the funder can take, and get the answer in writing before you sign.
It depends on the agreement. Some contracts let you pass the agreement to the buyer, and some need the balance settled first. Ask this before you sign, not when you list the house.
That depends on the funder and the deal. If a deposit is asked for, find out what it covers, when it is due and whether it can be refunded, and make sure it is written into the agreement.
Request a solar quote
Tell us about your home or business and your electricity use. We will size a system and finance option, then confirm a real quote after a short site check.