Selling a house with solar panels

I've read stories of mortgage lenders refusing to let people buy houses with solar panels, something to do with there being a lease involved. You may find the panels will put some buyers off while others will like the idea of being environment friendly.

With regards to what to do with the income, I'm afraid I have no idea but someone must have experienced this kind of thing.

Mark_Beech wrote: »

Hi Everyone
I am unexpectedly having to move and I'm putting my house on the market. My problem is that I only had an array of solar panels fitted 6 months ago.
Does anyone know what the protocol is for selling a house with solar panels? My contract with EDF means that I (or any potential purchaser of my house) will receive a cheque every year from EDF for around £1500 ... for the next 25 years. This will also be index linked so is likely to amount to about £50,000.
Should I expect any buyer to pay a premium for this? Or is it possible for me to retain the contract with EDF even after I have moved. Surely there must be precedents for this with householders who have "rented" their roofs to the likes of British Gas etc.? I paid the full cost of my installation and so I own it and the contract with my energu supplier. None of the estate agents who have valued my house seem to have a clue what to do. Help!! :doh:

If you own the panels outright, then you should be able to demand a premium for the house (compared to the same house without panels). The feed-in-tariff is transferrable (at the same rate you originally got it) to the next owner - not to you when you move.

Pricing the panels will be difficult for a number of reasons. Firstly, there's not much history (not many people have sold houses with them). Secondly, you might think the value should be based on the future revenue stream, but the buyer is likely to want to pay a normal "second hand" value, based on the installation cost you paid.

If I was viewing a house with PV panels, I would expect the owner to show me the sales invoice, the FiT contract etc.

Interestingly, you are allowed to take the panels with you, although you wouldn't qualify for the FiT if you reinstalled them at your new place. However, the fact that they aren't 100% considered as part of the fabric means that you could consider not including them on the details and effecively offering to sell them to the new owner separately. Depending on the price of the house (i.e. if you're near a stamp duty threshold), this might be a cunning win-win scenario.... the buyer could pay, say £250k plus £10,000 for the panels, saving £5,000 of stamp duty. Since there is minimal market data, it would be hard for the treasury to argue that the prcie you agreed for the chattels (PV panels) is excessive and being done purely to avoid stamp duty.....

Mark_Beech wrote: »

Or is it possible for me to retain the contract with EDF even after I have moved.

Yes to this - refer to http://www.solar-help.co.uk/blog/2011/solar-panels/keep-earning-from-feed-in-tariffs-even-if-you-sell-your-home for details. Provided it's all agreed with all the parties, you could keep receiving the FiT, while the new owner gets the benefit of free electricity (up to the capacity of the panels). Of course, few people would probably want this scenario - it wouldn't be in the buyer's interests, as they're missing out on revenue, while it would be risky for you, since you have no idea how much electricity they will use and are potentially liable for upkeep etc.

If I was a purchaser you would have to reduce the price for me to buy a home with solar panels on the roof.

people need to understand that solar panels are like conservatories or loft conversions, some people like them and some don't.

No added value for me just hassle!