How much value do solar panels add to a home?

Solar panels can add value to your home in a few different ways. Firstly, the lower electricity bills are a great draw to buyers due to the steeply rising price of traditional energy. A recent study has shown that a third of UK buyers would be willing to pay more for a house with solar PV installed, in order to benefit from these lower energy bills. Solar panels also last for a long time with little maintenance, when properly installed by an MCS approved installer.

One way solar panels can significantly increase your home’s appeal, and subsequently its value, is through the Feed-in Tariff (FiT). The Feed-in Tariff is an ongoing payment the government offers homeowners for creating clean, renewable energy through solar panels.

If you are planning on selling your house within 20 years of installing solar panels the FiT payments will pass directly onto the new homeowner. As the new owner did not pay out for installing the solar panels, this is essentially a small, free income. An attractive prospect which should help raise the overall value of your property.

Solar panels can also add value to your house by raising the house’s EPC (Energy Performance Certificate) grade. Every house being bought or sold in the UK needs to have a valid EPC. After being assessed your house will be awarded a grade from A (highest) to G (lowest). EPC ratings can have a significant effect on house values. Solar panels have been known to raise a house’s EPC rating by at least 2 grades, this is reflected in the house's value. For example, increasing the EPC from a band D to a band B could raise the value of an average house by more than £16,000.