{"id":3810,"date":"2018-05-10T19:00:37","date_gmt":"2018-05-11T02:00:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/?p=3810"},"modified":"2026-03-18T09:34:48","modified_gmt":"2026-03-18T16:34:48","slug":"california-is-making-bold-moves-toward-solar-should-the-rest-of-the-country-follow-suit","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/california-is-making-bold-moves-toward-solar-should-the-rest-of-the-country-follow-suit\/","title":{"rendered":"California Is Making Bold Moves Toward Solar, Should The Rest of The Country Follow Suit?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Turns out California sunshine is good for a lot more than a great tan and enviable Instagram beach posts. In fact, the Golden State is betting big on harnessing the strength of this giant sphere of hot plasma to better the planet and meet aggressive renewable energy goals<\/a> by requiring that all new homes have solar power \u2014 either through rooftop panels or a shared solar-power system among homes, the first such regulation in the nation.<\/p>\n

What\u2019s the price tag on solar, you ask? Well, that\u2019s the million-dollar question.<\/p>\n

The New York Times<\/em> reports<\/a> the rule is expected to add an estimated $8,000 to $12,000 to the cost of a home (a bit hard to swallow in a state where the costs of real estate are reaching all-time highs<\/a>). That equates to an extra $40 on your monthly 30-year mortgage payment. But according to the California Energy Commission, energy savings will make up for those dollar signs and then some \u2014 by shaving an approximate $80 off homeowners\u2019 heat, AC and lighting bills.<\/p>\n

\"A<\/a><\/p>\n

Could other states use this bold move as a blueprint for solar? It certainly wouldn\u2019t be the first time we saw this type of copycat effect play out with California leading the way. Already 13 states use California\u2019s emission standards and 28 follow its minimum renewable energy requirements, according to Time<\/em><\/a>.<\/p>\n

On the flip side, given the upfront cost to builders and buyers, some say this type of push for statewide renewable energy could be difficult to replicate elsewhere.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis would be a very expensive way to expand renewables and would not be a cost effective practice that other states and countries could adopt to reduce their own greenhouse gas footprints,\u201d wrote Severin Borenstein, an economics professor at the University of California, Berkeley, in a letter<\/a> to the Energy Commission as obtained by MIT Technology Review<\/a>.<\/p>\n

In a previous post,<\/a> HomeLight looked at solar panels and how they impact your property values. The short answer is: It’s complicated.<\/p>\n

First, location matters. Solar can be a valuable investment for future buyers when it\u2019s been recently installed and when you\u2019re living in a place where it\u2019s becoming the norm (and you can count on many a sunny day). With California\u2019s new requirements, there\u2019s no question that solar powered-homes will become not just common but standard for the Golden State, which could mitigate some of the difficult dynamics solar can bring to the table during a home sale.<\/p>\n

As Ilyce R. Glink and Samuel J. Tamkin of the Washington Post<\/em><\/a> point out: \u201cIf lots of homes in your area have solar panels, and buyers are learning to expect them, adding them might give you something extra to promote your home when it comes time to sell. However, if few homes have solar panels and buyers tend not to pay for the investment, you might not get back the money you put into the panels.\u201d<\/p>\n

In addition, under California\u2019s new rules, buyers can choose to own the panels off the bat, and pay for them as part of their home purchase, or they can lease them. That decision could make a big difference for owners of these new solar-equipped homes down the line when it\u2019s time to sell, as the remaining balance of the leased panels will be absorbed by the new buyers.<\/p>\n

Other factors to weigh include the age of the solar package, the warranty (which buyers will, of course, ask about), and the added difficulty in getting a loan on a home with solar panels, all of which can muddy the value of adding solar to your house.<\/p>\n

Yet, at least in California, you might be able to make a special case for solar in your future listing description.<\/p>\n

As described by Lynn Jurich, co-founder and chief executive of solar installation company Sunrun, in an interview<\/a> with the\u00a0New York Times<\/em>, you just can\u2019t beat \u201cthe real American sense of freedom of producing electricity on my rooftop.”<\/p>\n

Article Image\u00a0Source: (ulleo\/ Pixabay)<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

We looked at solar panels and how they impact your property values. You might find that it’s more complicated than you thought.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":66,"featured_media":3811,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"content-type":"","cybocfi_hide_featured_image":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[320,334],"tags":[461,462,460],"class_list":["post-3810","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-add-value","category-news","tag-selling-a-house-in-california","tag-solar-panels-home-value","tag-solar-power"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nCalifornia is Making Bold Moves Toward Solar. Should the Rest of the Country Follow Suit?<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"We looked at solar panels and how they impact your property values. 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