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Addition of Solar powering home affect home value

4,306 Views | 26 Replies | Last: 4 yr ago by hph6203
RXAggie02
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Howdy all!

I was considering adding solar panels to our home and utilizing the Government (tax rebate) for installation. I am skeptical of all the "benefits" sales people say about it and need some real life examples.

As I know I expect to pay a monthly bill (replace the electric bill) that basically pays for the system and install until it is paid off. During this time I should have NO payment due to the electric company.

They really push the fact you will get a %30 percent tax deduction if installed by end of this year? Truth? I can put this money right back into the system cost if true.

They all say that the value of the system would add that value to your house (VERY VERY SKEPTICAL OF THIS) If I installed a $40K system, I have basically paying for power not an upgrade on the house, but unsure if this would translate to an increase in home value. Again I dont think it would, but dont know anyone who has done this or sold a property with a system such as this.

Any feedback or experience would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
Shane
p_bubel
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Every market is different, around here in San Antonio it's around $0 in added value. At least in most parts of the city. I've never seen it come close to breaking even with the cost.

I've even seen them removed after purchase.

You are right to be wary of numbers supplied by someone selling something.

It could be something totally different in your market area though.
CS78
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For me personally it would be a turn off. One more thing to go out and have to worry about.
aggiepaintrain
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I would only get them if I were truly "off the grid" because if you are tied to the grid and the grid goes down you are down too.

Read up on what happened recently in CA

aggie appraiser
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A big builder hired a new MBA several years back and decided they were going to sell green homes in a particular neighborhood and put solar panels on the roof of the model home. I appraised a ton of homes for the builder and they never sold one system, except the model home and it didn't sell for any more than their other homes. I have appraised a few homes with them and the owners brag about them, but I haven't found any data to support a big difference. Most of what I have seen is leased. If you give a person a choice between $40,000 dollars in solar, or get $40,000 more house, or a house with a pool for an extra $40,000. They are likely going to pick the bigger house or the house with a pool.
Macarthur
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Maybe I'm in the minority, but if you give me the solar panels and I will basically not have an electric bill ever...I'm taking the solar panels.
one MEEN Ag
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Macarthur said:

Maybe I'm in the minority, but if you give me the solar panels and I will basically not have an electric bill ever...I'm taking the solar panels.
On the best day, your electric bill just gets re-titled to 'solar lease payment.'

The problem with solar is you can't easily do that unless you're off the grid already. Because if you're off the grid, you've bought a solar system and your house is designed around it. You've got a grid+battery + inverter and your home is probably way smaller than a 4000 sq foot house with extremely energy efficient appliances.

Solar panels on your average suburban home don't fully replace your power consumption, so what you're doing is reselling electricity back to the grid at all times and given offset credits. There are a bunch of wonky fees and underhanded practices around consumer solar reselling- you don't get good rates, and you are a headache/liability to the electricity providers. The lineman don't want your solar panel backfeeding the grid when its down as you can kill someone. So the safest requirement is you can't energize your home when the power is out. Pretty big issue if you view solar as some form of independence.

Furthermore, a huge majority of people don't outright own the solar panels themselves. They've given a company a 30 year, transferable lease to a solar maintenance company that also eats into your ROI.

Solar on top of a roof of a suburban house is basically a case study in government credits and smugness on a nationwide scale. If you want solar power for your home, the simplest way is to pick an energy retailer that sells 100% renewable power to you.



Red Pear Realty
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Sponsor
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Shane,

If you decide to get the solar panels, be very careful about how the deal is actually structured with the solar company--if you aren't paying for it with cash up front, you are probably getting ripped off. Here's a video from a YouTube channel I follow that does a good job of explaining some of the "scams" in the solar industry (my favorite quote comes right at 3:02).....



Sponsor Message: We Split Commissions. Full Service Agents in Austin, Bryan-College Station, Dallas-Fort Worth, Houston and San Antonio. Red Pear Realty
DannyDuberstein
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Yeah, my in-laws got solar panels a couple of years ago, but mostly because my FIL is a gadget dude with money to burn that can't stand a neighbor having a toy he doesn't. So once a couple popped up in his neighborhood, he had to have it too. But I would confirm he learned what a bad deal the reselling agreements were, so much so that he abandoned it to just sign up for a regular plan because it was cheaper net/net.
Deats99
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I lend in 12 states across the south out of a 50 state office in Plano. Solar panels get **** for value on appraisals and end up killing more deals than helping because of insurance issues.
A good plan violently executed now is better than a perfect plan executed next week.
-George S Patton
malenurse
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The last thing I want to do is hurt you. But, it's still on the list.
Stanky
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My experience in Colorado has been very positive. My house is perfectly situated to take advantage of solar. I went with Tesla (formerly Solar City). Had it for two years now. My system does entirely replace my electric bill, except for connection fees. But, I sell enough excess energy back to the grid to cover my hookup fees. Got a good deal and took advantage of 30% tax credit. ROI was further reduced by referrals of $2K. Next house will have the solar roof and maybe even solar windows if those have hit the market. Plan to integrate batteries to accompany an electric truck as soon as Ford or Tesla offer a viable product.
94chem
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Deats99 said:

I lend in 12 states across the south out of a 50 state office in Plano. Solar panels get **** for value on appraisals and end up killing more deals than helping because of insurance issues.
What insurance issues? Do they fly off like saw blades?
p_bubel
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Hail storms would be one.
94chem
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p_bubel said:

Hail storms would be one.
OK. Probably worse than Spanish tiles. I'm in Houston - I forgot the weekly DFW hailstorms from my childhood.
jopatura
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Solar is going up hard in my neighborhood and several neighbors have been snake bit. One problem they are running into is that the contracts are non-transferable unless the buyer wants to take them over. So the sellers have to pay the leases in full before they can close. Then it's not adding value to the house so they are losing lots of money in some cases.

Don't do it just for the home value/energy savings. You really need a third reason.
94chem
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That's what entire YouTube video above is about.
Stanky
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My insurance issues are exactly zero. Have USAA. Live in one of the worst hail states. Solar panels are rated higher than my roof against hail. Like anything you get what you pay for. There are some cheap systems out there.

As for resale value, I never considered it in my cost analysis. May depend on the perception of solar in your area. Certainly depends on the quality of system installed. Colorado is pro renewable. Won't be a negative here.

My electric co-op encourages solar. Makes the grid more stable. Good business deal for them. They buy at a lower price from me and resell to my neighbors.
Deats99
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Stanky said:

My insurance issues are exactly zero. Have USAA. Live in one of the worst hail states. Solar panels are rated higher than my roof against hail. Like anything you get what you pay for. There are some cheap systems out there.

As for resale value, I never considered it in my cost analysis. May depend on the perception of solar in your area. Certainly depends on the quality of system installed. Colorado is pro renewable. Won't be a negative here.

My electric co-op encourages solar. Makes the grid more stable. Good business deal for them. They buy at a lower price from me and resell to my neighbors.
So when you have to replace the roof for a total loss, assuming the system is not torn up Who pays to take the system down? Store the panels? Hook you back up when you are done?
A good plan violently executed now is better than a perfect plan executed next week.
-George S Patton
The Fife
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Over here (Charleston) most of the houses with solar panels have them leased. I've seen it mentioned in a few listings about how the lease will need to be transferred or the current owner needing to buy it out or having them removed. Sounds kind of like a mess to me, and the builder I asked about it said you really need to put them on when reroofing because it'll be a lot less prone to leaks that way.

I'm surprised they're as popular as they are since this isn't a state where the power company has to let you sell excess back to them last time I checked. Also with regard to power going out, the houses that have them have a note on the phone pole and a disconnect somewhere obvious to keep from energizing the electrical wires when a crew needs to work on them. No clue how well they work to keep the lights on when the power goes out. Even with all the tropical stuff that comes through every year I think the longest blackout has been about 30 minutes.
rich1
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Add some Tesla Power Walls so you can keep power if the grid goes down.
Absolute
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Deats99 said:

Stanky said:

My insurance issues are exactly zero. Have USAA. Live in one of the worst hail states. Solar panels are rated higher than my roof against hail. Like anything you get what you pay for. There are some cheap systems out there.

As for resale value, I never considered it in my cost analysis. May depend on the perception of solar in your area. Certainly depends on the quality of system installed. Colorado is pro renewable. Won't be a negative here.

My electric co-op encourages solar. Makes the grid more stable. Good business deal for them. They buy at a lower price from me and resell to my neighbors.
So when you have to replace the roof for a total loss, assuming the system is not torn up Who pays to take the system down? Store the panels? Hook you back up when you are done?


The one time I have run I to this situation, the insurance was paying the extra 6k for removal and reinstallation. Panels were already in the garage. So I imagine the insurance Company is charging extra for the panels, even though they withstand the hail itself??
Absolute
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Will the power company buy back the power in Texas? I was told they were resisting.
The Fife
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I'm pretty sure some do because I could swear I heard my dad going on about this a few months ago. They have whatever the provider in South Hays County is.
Shaun05
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I know Green Mountain Energy buys back energy. I know a few neighbors here in the Houston area use them after they had their panels installed.
The Pilot
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Let's try and make them look better. Every house that has them in Colorado would look nicer without them IMO.
Deats99
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Absolute said:

Deats99 said:

Stanky said:

My insurance issues are exactly zero. Have USAA. Live in one of the worst hail states. Solar panels are rated higher than my roof against hail. Like anything you get what you pay for. There are some cheap systems out there.

As for resale value, I never considered it in my cost analysis. May depend on the perception of solar in your area. Certainly depends on the quality of system installed. Colorado is pro renewable. Won't be a negative here.

My electric co-op encourages solar. Makes the grid more stable. Good business deal for them. They buy at a lower price from me and resell to my neighbors.
So when you have to replace the roof for a total loss, assuming the system is not torn up Who pays to take the system down? Store the panels? Hook you back up when you are done?


The one time I have run I to this situation, the insurance was paying the extra 6k for removal and reinstallation. Panels were already in the garage. So I imagine the insurance Company is charging extra for the panels, even though they withstand the hail itself??
The ones that have have caused issues have have been for 2 reasons.
1)They don't understand that the the panels stand up better to hail than roofing materials
2)Removal and reconnection expense costs
A good plan violently executed now is better than a perfect plan executed next week.
-George S Patton
hph6203
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Absolute said:

Will the power company buy back the power in Texas? I was told they were resisting.

Yes. And Oncor in DFW is encouraging installs.

If you go solar you want to future proof by getting an inverter with battery back up options even if you don't intend on getting batteries now. Prices on batteries are going to fall off a cliff soon as battery backup solutions become more mainstream.

Your goal with solar should be payback period rather than resale, resale prices are a bonus if they occur. If I were to put solar on my roof it's have a ~6 year payback. Solar makes more sense in regulated energy area rather than deregulated areas, because electric in Texas is dirt cheap by comparison to California where not paying 14-24 cents per kWh is probably a huge selling point, saving 7-10 cents per kWh with solar panels isn't quite as appealing.
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