How Owning Solar Panels Improves the Future Sales of Your Home

How Owning Solar Panels Improves the Future Sales of Your Home

In recent years, solar panels have become one of the most popular home additions when it comes to saving money and living sustainably. Homeowners enjoy energy independence, a far smaller carbon footprint and perhaps best of all, lower electricity bills. However, homeowners often have questions. For starters, does having solar panels affect selling your house? Or more specifically, is it harder to sell a house with solar panels? Absolutely not! In fact, solar adds about 4% to the sale cost of your home. So, if you’re a homeowner selling a house with owned solar panels, it’s important to understand how owning a system may influence your selling process. Read on to learn more.

UNDERSTAND YOUR SOLAR PANEL SYSTEM

Before listing your home for sale, it’s crucial to thoroughly understand your solar panel system. Sure, you bought it, but do you know its ins and outs? Likely not entirely — but that’s OK! To get started, try familiarizing yourself with these factors:

• Brand and type
• Size
• Age 
• Efficiency rating
• Maintenance history

So, how do you access (and thus know) this information? Well, gather the relevant documents, which include these:

• Warranties
• Installation permits
• Financing agreement (selling a house with financed solar panels isn’t as rare as you’d think, by the way)

Once you consolidate all this information, potential buyers can understand the value and benefits your unique home offers. And most importantly, they can understand your solar panel system setup.

HIGHLIGHT THE BENEFITS OF YOUR SYSTEM

It’s not breaking news that solar panels offer a range of benefits for homeowners. First, solar panel systems are aesthetically attractive features because they bring style and science to your property. This is a big plus for buyers scouting for a new home. As a result, do houses with solar sell faster? In general, they do — spending 13.3% less time on the market. But the speed may depend somewhat on you. When listing your house for sale, emphasize the benefits of having solar panels. Here are some prime examples:

• Reduced electricity costs
• Potential tax incentives
• Positive environmental impact
• Lower energy consumption

Both eco- and money-conscious buyers will find these perks compelling.