For many homeowners, the conversation about adding rooftop solar panels starts with cutting utility bills — but there are plenty of other reasons to make the switch. One of them is that adding a home solar system could actually increase your home’s resale value … but is that true?
The short answer is: yes (kinda).
In theory, the more features a house has, the more it costs. A pool, a bigger garage, or a finished basement — all those upgrades add value to a home when it’s compared to a home without them. By that logic, then, rooftop solar panels should make a house more desirable, too. And they often do. But, as with most things, the reality is a bit more complicated.
One of the biggest complications when it comes to selling a home with solar panels comes down to who owns the solar panels. If you’ve leased your solar setup through a company like Sunrun, for example, the solar company that sold you the panels still owns the panels, not you. That could mean that any potential buyers would have to assume the lease themselves, or that the seller has to buy out the lease before selling.
Leasing reduces a homeowner’s up-front and monthly costs, making it a popular choice – but the process of transferring a lease can complicate a sale, slow down negotiations, or even limit the pool of potential buyers. That’s especially true in areas where rooftop solar panels aren’t common, or have been heavily politicized.
By contrast, many homeowners choose to finance their solar system through a “conventional” loan or a home equity line of credit (HELOC). In these cases, you own your panels from day one, even if you’re still paying them off over time. And, because ownership is clear in those cases, the solar panels can more easily be considered part of the home, like kitchen appliances or a washer/dryer set.
While this avenue might have a higher up-front or monthly cost for the seller, there’s no lease to assume and no third-party approval or contracts required to complete the sale.
Financing also offers flexibility in structuring payments, with some homeowners choosing short-term loans to pay off the system quickly and others use longer-term HELOCs to spread costs out over a longer timeline. In either case, ownership ensures that the value of your solar installation can be transferred seamlessly to the next buyer. Plus, a savvy realtor can even highlight a fully-owned solar array in the listing as a long-term cost saver rather than a leased add-on.
That’s not to say that leasing, financing, or even paying cash is the best way to go for everyone (after all, if inflation is higher than your interest rate, the best thing you can do is borrow today’s “good” money and pay it back with tomorrow’s “garbage” money at what is, effectively, a discount). Get several quotes from reputable installers and find out about what options they recommend, then work with a trusted financial expert to determine the best path for you.
From theory to practice
A realtor named Alisha Collins recently posted a video to TikTok where she walks us through the sale of a house and the role that the home’s $50,000 rooftop solar panel installation played in that sale. The sale was something that, while it might seem common enough to Electrek readers, was a first for Collins.
“This is a great benefit because the buyers are getting the solar panels to use in the future to save them money on their electricity, and they weren’t gonna have to buy them,” Alisha remarks. “So I focused on marketing what the positives of solar panels are — less utilities, lower utility bills if any, clean energy, and also, the buyers were getting an almost new system.”
Collins keeps calling the lease a “loan” throughout the video, but (in my opinion) makes some solid observations and is thinking about things the right way, keeping an open mind, and trying to do right by her clients. You can watch the video for yourself, below, then let us know what you think of Collins’ take in the comments.
@alishacollinsrealestate Just sold my first house with solar panels ☀️🏡 and honestly… I thought it was going to be way more challenging than it was. But the strategy the seller and I used made all the difference: ✅ We decided to pay off the solar panels at closing so the cost was basically built into the price — simple and clean. We got an offer after a price reduction and then… crossed our fingers for the appraisal 🤞 Because let’s be real — some appraisers value solar differently and that can make or break a deal. This one worked out — but solar definitely adds a layer to navigate. 💬 Have you ever bought or sold a house with solar? What was your experience? #alishacollins #realestatebestie #casperwyoming #solarhomes #homesellingtips #realestatetalk #appraisals #solarpanels #greenhome #realestatewin #listingstrategy ♬ Soft Sunlight (Lofi) – Prodbyecho
Original content from Electrek.
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