How Solar Panels Will Increase Your Property Value

The two biggest arguments for installing solar panels on your property are that they are good for the environment and will increase the value of your home. There is no doubt that solar panels are a green source of energy and they will significantly reduce the carbon footprints of your energy-hungry house. What may not be so clear is how solar panels will impact the market value of your home.

This question is important for homeowners due to the high upfront cost of acquiring solar panels. Even though most homeowners know that a solar panel on the roof of their home will reduce their monthly energy bills, as EvolveNV points out, they are more concerned about how much savings they can expect. Will the panels save enough money to repay the cost of buying them, and how long will it take to reach this point?

Additionally, how will the panels affect the overall aesthetics of the home? Will solar panels on the roof of their home diminish its appeal and make the property less valuable in the eyes of buyers? Or will the potential energy savings from the solar panels be more than enough reason for buyers to overlook the presence of the panels on the home’s roof and pay more for the property?

A 2019 Zillow study that compared the sales prices of homes with solar panels against the prices of homes without solar panels found that on average, homes with solar panels sold for 4.1% more than homes without panels. For median-valued homes in the study, this difference in selling prices amounted to an additional $9,274 to the value of the property.

To support the findings of the Zillow report, The Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy affirms that solar panels do indeed increase the value of a home. Solar-powered homes not only sold for $15,000 more, on average, but they also sold faster than homes without solar panels. This is because buyers viewed the solar panels as upgrades; the same way they view a kitchen or bathroom renovation.

A third study, involving 23,000 homes in eight states across the US found that homes with solar panels saw an increase in value of $4 for every watt of solar power installed. The effect of solar panels on home value has become so apparent that Fannie Mae has made the presence of solar panels on a home one of the criteria appraisers must use for deciding the home’s value. But these benefits only apply to homes where the panels are owned and not leased.

There are three major ways that homeowners can reap the benefits of installing solar panels on their property:

• The first and most important benefit is the potential decrease in the home’s energy costs. Solar panels can cut down the amount of money homeowners spend on energy by as much as $500 per year. The data shows that for every $1 reduction in the home’s yearly utility bill, the property’s value increases by $20. This means that $400 savings on energy costs per year result in an additional $8,000 to a home’s value.

This does not even consider the fact that solar power makes a home more comfortable. For instance, homes with solar panels are more likely to have heated floors than homes without solar panels. Owners of non-solar-powered homes must think of the impact on their energy costs before making this addition. But equipping a home with solar panels makes adding other features which increase the home’s value easier.

• Solar panels increase a home’s value because of the homeowners’ increasing desire to go green. People derive a level of personal satisfaction from knowing they are doing their part to save the planet. This intangible and unquantifiable benefit can be a huge factor in buyers’ decisions. Because they take pride in owning a home that produces green electricity, buyers are willing to pay a premium for homes with solar panels.

• Finally, unlike many upgrades, which are mostly an expense, adding solar panels is a solid investment. Most upgrades are cosmetic in nature and their value is highly subjective. Homeowners’ hope of recouping their investment is tenuous because the benefits of the renovation may not be visible or buyers may not value it as much as the homeowner.

But it is completely different with adding solar panels; the benefit of the upgrade is concrete and measurable in actual dollar amounts. This makes the possibility of improving a home’s value with a solar panel installation more certain than with any other home upgrade.

Article Provided by: Solar Sun Pro - Las Vegas, NV - http://www.solarsunpro.com

Written by: Jason Evanchak / Mason Williams - Evolve Nevada - https://evolvenv.com/