Think Twice Before You Lease Solar Panels for Your Home!
“Going Green” is a hot topic across the country. Home owners and home buyers need to consider the many factors below, before committing to solar panels for your home.
A recent study has shown that solar panels can potentially add up to $15,000 in value to your home’s appraisal price. BUT—AND THIS IS A BIG BUT—This additional value must be offset by the $20,000 to $30,000 you will spend for the panels.
AFTER YOU DO THE MATH, YOU MAY HAVE TO ASK YOURSELF: “IS THIS REALLY A GOOD INVESTMENT?”
Unless you HAVE MONEY TO BURN, you will most likely sign a lease to pay for them over time VS. paying cash up front. The majority of these leases are for a term of 20+ years and can be very TRICKY.
DO YOU WANT TO LEASE SOMETHING THAT MAY BE AS LONG AS THE MORTGAGE ON YOUR HOME?
Here’s one scenario: Say you take out a lease and at some point you decide to sell your home. That lease will need to be shifted to the new owner, or YOU will need to pay it off; it doesn’t end with your ownership. So, if the buyer wants to assume the solar panel lease, they’ll need to credit-qualify and add that monthly payment to their debt to income ratio. (Just FYI, electric bills are never factored into the qualifying information in a typical home purchase, An extra $100-$150+ a month solar lease, could take your buyers loan, up too high to qualify) WELL, YOU GET THE IDEA.
THERE ARE A NUMBER OF OTHER CONSIDERATIONS BEFORE YOU PANEL THE ROOF… READ ON…
Well there must be some good reasons for buying these solar panels. After all, it’s the latest hype. Future rising energy costs may be a plausible reason. Many solar energy companies use the “saved energy costs” as their marketing ploy. However, consider this, technology changes rapidly and the panels you buy today, will be obsolete before your 20 year lease is up.
How have the satellite dish and cell phones changed in the last 20 years?
Keep in mind, saving on energy costs works, only if your panels work perfectly and efficiently for 20 YEARS.
I guess for homeowners who have never had their hot water heater, air conditioning, refrigerator or dishwasher in need of repair over 20 years, this may seem like a possibility… For the other 99% of us, the glass is half empty… and not with hot water.
Oh, and don’t forget about insurance, maintenance and extra warranty costs to the solar panels you lease or buy.
Obviously, whether you are a homebuyer or seller, there are many factors to consider when it comes to solar panels for a home.
Let us know if we can help you sort through it. We are here to help you.
This article is brought to you by Jackie Barikhan who is a Nationally Licensed Mortgage Advisor.
If you are a first time home buyer in Los Angeles, Orange County or are searching for California home loans visit our website https://www.mylenderjackie.com