Depends what you want to do. If it is a small set up for a cabin or something then 12v has the advantage that there are a lot of small items available that can run directly from the battery. These things are usually available for RV and boats.
If you want something bigger and you will use an inverter for quite a lot of things then to be perfectly honest 12v becomes a liability. If you are looking st something at 1kw or over then starting with 12v will cramp your style and cause endless frustration if you want to expand.
If this is serious power use for off grid living then virtually everything points to 48v . The snag is that it brings you up into the professional equipment range and cost is high. Even switches and breakers need to be considered carefully.
If you want a modest system using an inverter but you are not a real serious off grid user dependent on wind power then 24v is far better than 12v but you still can get cheap inverters and the problems of switches is far less. Common ac switches and breakers usually handle 24v.
I wouldn't consider anything over 500W for 12v. Up to about 3kW 24v can be quite effective and probably still reasonably cheap. If you are going with the big boys then 48v is the way to go but it becomes expensive, fine if you are totally dependent on it, but if it is part energy saving or part hobby or just a small set up then 24 may suit your needs.
If you get into serious power then even 48v is too low but at higher voltages you have many issues to cope with.
Flux