When people consider adding solar panels to their home, it’s not unusual to think of the environmental benefits first. Solar panels will certainly reduce your family’s carbon footprint and renewable energy will certainly help save our planet. But invariably the question will turn to cost. At Greenleaf Solar we want our customers to know that our solar panels will save you money on your energy bills but there are other benefits as well.
Greenleaf Solar Will Save You Money
Greenleaf Solar customers can significantly lower their electric bill. That’s because customers can allow you to be credited for the excess power you produce when you are not using it. Greenleaf Solar has long saved you money on your energy bill, but we want you to know about another way solar panels can help your bottom line. Recent research shows that owning solar panels can increase your property value.
The Berkeley Lab Study
The study, conducted at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory in California looked into sales data for 23,000 homes in eight different states from 2002 to 2013 to see how much of an effect solar panels had on the sales price, according to the New York Times. About 4,000 of the homes had solar photovoltaic systems. The researchers only looked at cases where the homeowners owned the solar panels rather than lease them.
They found that buyers were willing to pay $15,000 more for homes with average sized systems, which average 3.6 kilowatts, compared to buyers who purchase homes without solar panels.
“Previous studies on PV home premiums have been limited in size and scope,” says Ben Hoen, the lead author of the new report. “We more than doubled the number of PV home sales analyzed, examined a number of states outside of California, and captured the market during the recent housing boom, bust, and recovery.”
Fannie Mae, the government-sponsored enterprise which guarantees mortgage loans has acknowledged the rise in homes equipped with solar panels by publishing guidelines in 2015 specifying that if a house involved in a sale owns a solar panel system, home appraisals should analyze that system and the market to see if the solar panels add value to the home.
Why Owning a Greenleaf Solar Panels Beats Renting
You should note that there’s a difference between owning and leasing solar panels when it comes to property values. As we mentioned, the Berkley Lab research did not include homes that lease solar panels and the lab says more research is needed on how leased solar panels affect property values. The Fannie Mae guidelines don’t include solar panel rentals either. Angie’s List points out that homebuyers would have to take over the lease payments and with no extra appraisal value it could end up costing you money.
But you don’t have to worry about this with Greenleaf Solar. We don’t lease our solar panels, we sell them. In addition to the possible financial hit you might take when selling your home while under a lease agreement, there are other benefits to buying over leasing. You’ll get to keep the federal and state rebates you get for adding solar power to your home and your monthly payments will be lower.
There are so many benefits to owning Greenleaf Solar Panels you’d be hard-pressed to find reasons not to at least consider it. We’re happy to take you through the entire process and answer any questions you may have. Contact us today.