Replace a tired roof before the array, not after
Panels outlast most roof coverings. If yours is within a few years of the end of its life, replace it first. Removing and reinstalling an array to get at the roof underneath is a cost with no offsetting benefit whatsoever, and it is entirely avoidable while you are still quoting.
Ask for a condition assessment rather than an age estimate, and consider getting it from a roofer rather than only from the company selling you solar. Mid-Atlantic freeze and thaw cycling ages a covering faster than the calendar suggests.
Ask how many layers of covering are present, what the structure underneath is, and whether anything needs reinforcement to carry the array plus snow load. An installer who has not been on the roof cannot answer those questions.
If the roof does need work, coordinating both jobs is usually cheaper and less disruptive than doing them years apart. Ask the roofer and the installer to speak to each other about sequencing and about how the mounting will interact with the new covering.
How it attaches, and who stands behind it
Ask how mounting penetrations are flashed and sealed, and what method the roofing manufacturer approves for your covering type. If the roof is still under a manufacturer or builder warranty, establish the position before work begins rather than during a future claim.
Ask what the workmanship warranty covers on roof penetrations specifically, for how long, and who honours it. This is the warranty that matters most and the one people read least, because the failure it covers arrives years after everyone has stopped thinking about the installation.
Establish who honours each of the other warranties too. Panels, inverter and workmanship are commonly covered by three different parties on three different terms, and a company that has left the market cannot support a workmanship warranty however well drafted.
Get equipment specified by manufacturer and model number rather than by description. Model numbers are what make a warranty enforceable later and what let you compare two quotes on the same basis.
One reason the choice of installer costs money directly
In Maryland the installer you choose has a price attached beyond their quote. The Maryland Energy Administration Residential Clean Energy Rebate Program pays $1,000, and the installation must be completed by an installer certified by the North American Board of Certified Energy Practitioners.
So an uncertified installer who is cheaper may not be cheaper at all once the forfeited rebate is counted, and nothing recovers it afterwards. Ask every installer whether the work will be completed by a NABCEP certified installer and ask for the certification details rather than an assurance.
The other conditions matter too: the system must be at your primary residential property and at least 1 kilowatt, the application must reach the MEA within 12 months of installation, and the rebate is first come, first served, so confirm funding status.
Ask also whether they handle the Public Service Commission registration and the GATS step within 30 days of registering, since without those your system does not earn SRECs at all.
The rebate to claim, and the exemptions that need no application
The Maryland Energy Administration Residential Clean Energy Rebate Program pays $1,000 for a qualifying residential solar system. The condition to settle before you choose an installer is that the installation must be completed by an installer certified by the North American Board of Certified Energy Practitioners, because nothing recovers the rebate afterwards if it was not.
The system must also be at your primary residential property and at least 1 kilowatt, and the application must reach the MEA within 12 months of installation. It is first come, first served, so confirm the current funding status rather than treating $1,000 as an entitlement.
Under Maryland Tax-Property Article Section 7-242, residential solar energy property is not subject to real property tax and solar energy equipment is exempt from the state sales and use tax. Neither arrives as a payment, so check your quote reflects the sales tax exemption and add the property tax treatment to your own arithmetic.
The 30 percent federal Residential Clean Energy Credit under Section 25D expired for property placed in service after December 31, 2025, so a cash or loan purchase now receives no federal credit. Section 48E survives at 30 percent for third-party owners under leases and power purchase agreements, so ask any such provider what they claim and what of that value reaches you, and confirm with a tax advisor.