Having Solar Panels on your home is very popular these days in San Diego. I often see more and more homeowners in North Park , South Park, and other neighborhoods in San Diego with Solar Panels in their homes. Before you think about having this done, ask yourself one question. Do you see yourself living in that house for more than ten years? If so then, maybe it makes sense to add solar to your house. But, if you don’t think you will be staying in that home for at least that long, this may not be the route to go. There are several things to consider with selling a house with solar panels.
Do Solar Panels Add Value
When making improvements to your home, you should always think of resale. Will having Solar Panels add value to your house when it comes time to sell your home? This depends; if you were to buy the Solar System, how many years will it take you to break even? If you were to sell your home, the buyer would see value in having a $10.00 electric bill or, sometimes, none at all. However, even if you buy the system but you turn around and decide to sell in a few years, would you see a return on your investment? Also, what happens if you were to lease it? Someone buying your home would not only have to qualify for a mortgage. They would also have to be eligible for the assignment of the lease. With the high home prices in San Diego, this can sometimes be tricky. If the homebuyer is at their absolute top of qualifying for a loan, they don’t always like that they now have to qualify and take over the Solar’s lease.
Financing Solar Panels
There are options for selling a home with solar if you own the system. This depends on how you financed the Solar Panels when you purchased them. If you took out an equity line on your house to pay for the system, the total balance would have to be paid to close on the sale of your house. The Escrow company facilitating the sale would take the money directly out of your proceeds, and a check would be sent to the Solar company. This will need to happen to sell the house with a clear title.
Depending on where you live, selling a house with solar panels can have its own challenges. It all depends on what company you used to install and whether you bought the solar system or leased. If you are fortunate enough to have been someone who bought their system outright, we have seen buyers are more likely to pay more for a system that is owned versus one that is leased. With this being said, when the system has already been paid for when you decide to sell your house, the selling process will be a whole lot smoother than it would be if your system were leased.
Realtor Experience With Selling Homes With Solar Systems
Let’s say you have solar panels on your home and have decided to sell your house. Ensure the Realtor you are working with knows how to get everything aligned, so the sale goes through without a glitch. The first thing you should do is contact the Solar Company right away. Let them know you will be selling your home and need to have the necessary paperwork sent to you. This would include your original agreement, the transfer agreement, PUCC (Request for Temporary removal of the document from Title) and the document that requests to remove the UCC ( UCC Finance Termination). Once an offer is accepted, all of this paperwork must be filled out immediately and properly. It must be made part of your purchase agreement. If this is not done correctly, things could be delayed and/your transaction could fall apart. This would be a bummer.
Determining if having Solar Panels installed in your house would be a good investment is the next step. I know that it is very popular these days and many people are doing so. Overall, I think it is because it can potentially increase the value of your house. But, this really all depends on your situation. Are you thinking of doing this because it will save on energy costs in the long run? Or, you may think having a Solar System in your house is good for the environment. This is a topic that some may argue.
Are Solar Panels A Waste?
Back in the early 2000s, Solar was becoming very popular, and they were installed in many homes. Now, in 2021 most of those Solar Panels are coming to the of their lifecycles. This creates a big problem for this industry because disposing of these panels is not friendly to the environment. Many claim the waste created by the production of these panels is more of an issue than the current fossil fuel they are looking to replace. Since it is much cheaper to discard the toxic metals inside the solar cells, the landfill is full of them. Those toxic metals leech out and possibly pose a health threat to the community if they get into the groundwater supply.
Solar Company Warranties
If you are thinking of having a Solar System installed in your house, do your homework first. How much money will you really be saving throughout the years? Does it make sense in your household.? Search for different companies and ask about their warranties. Panels typically and should come with a warranty. Ensure that the workmanship is warrantied as well should the installation cause a problem with solar power production. Ask your friends, neighbours and go online and check the better business bureau and yelp for reviews on different companies.
Lastly, if you are looking to sell your home in San Diego’s metro area, contact the McT Real Estate Group. We are local experts in the area and well versed with homes that have Solar Sytems.