Home charger recommendations

[durhamlad]

Sounds good I think it's time I looked at solar panels.

The government deal had expired by the time we got round to doing it but I do like it even though the ROI is close to 10 years now. My neighbour is still on a 20 year contract where he gets paid the going rate for everything he generates so typical gets about £800/year before any savings he makes by reduced consumption.

We save about £450/year based on what our typical consumption was before we had panels installed. Of course as electricity prices go up then so do our savings. Our electricity bill for the whole of last year was £66 and that was mostly due to the 20p/day standing charge. (We get paid 5.5p / kwH for what we export)

Being in a contract for years with the solar panel generation can put a lot of people off if you try to sell the house later. My Dad's neighbour is tied into a long contract with his solar panels and its devalued the house by about £25k when it was valued for sale.

Your Dad's neighbour must have entered a lease agreement with someone to pay for the installation. We had £8,500 sitting in a savings account earning very little so decided to invest it in a solar panel system.

We are not in a contract with anyone. We paid cash for the panels and installation, and anyone can switch to any electricity supplier they want should we sell the house.

[monkeyhanger]

Sounds about right - he'd skin a turd he's so tight.
It's proved to be a costly decision now he wants to move house.

[Sherlock]

Sounds good I think it's time I looked at solar panels.

The government deal had expired by the time we got round to doing it but I do like it even though the ROI is close to 10 years now. My neighbour is still on a 20 year contract where he gets paid the going rate for everything he generates so typical gets about £800/year before any savings he makes by reduced consumption.

We save about £450/year based on what our typical consumption was before we had panels installed. Of course as electricity prices go up then so do our savings. Our electricity bill for the whole of last year was £66 and that was mostly due to the 20p/day standing charge. (We get paid 5.5p / kwH for what we export)

Being in a contract for years with the solar panel generation can put a lot of people off if you try to sell the house later. My Dad's neighbour is tied into a long contract with his solar panels and its devalued the house by about £25k when it was valued for sale.

I don't understand this - what is it about the contract that devalues the house? I would have thought having solar panels would add value if anything? Thanks

[gailjon]

The government deal had expired by the time we got round to doing it but I do like it even though the ROI is close to 10 years now. My neighbour is still on a 20 year contract where he gets paid the going rate for everything he generates so typical gets about £800/year before any savings he makes by reduced consumption.

We save about £450/year based on what our typical consumption was before we had panels installed. Of course as electricity prices go up then so do our savings. Our electricity bill for the whole of last year was £66 and that was mostly due to the 20p/day standing charge. (We get paid 5.5p / kwH for what we export)

Being in a contract for years with the solar panel generation can put a lot of people off if you try to sell the house later. My Dad's neighbour is tied into a long contract with his solar panels and its devalued the house by about £25k when it was valued for sale.

I don't understand this - what is it about the contract that devalues the house? I would have thought having solar panels would add value if anything? Thanks

The issue is that when the house is sold, the contract remains on the property so the new owner has to take that on as well even if they don't want it. If it was just solar panels that came with the house then yes, there may be some benefit in terms of value, but not when the solar panels come with a contract attached.

Many homes fitted with solar panels will have had them installed free of charge by a solar power company. The homeowner will have leased the panels from the solar power company, usually for a 25-year term, who then has the right to the Feed-in Tariff payments. The homeowner enjoys low energy bills plus the prospect of the Feed-in Tariff after 25 years.

However, over time, some drawbacks with this initiative have become apparent:

Some mortgage lenders have issues with the fact that a large part of the roof is leased to a solar power company, not owned outright by the homeowner so make sure you check this with your lender.
Many of the original solar power companies have ceased trading so it may prove difficult to find out who owns the panels.
If the power company has assigned the management of the panels to an agent, the agent may charge a fee when the house is sold.
The terms of the lease with the power company may mean that the homeowner has to gain consent to extend the house or even to sell it! There may also be a clause that means the homeowner has to pay compensation for lost revenue if the solar panels have to be temporarily removed for roof repairs so make sure your solicitor requests a copy of the lease so he can identify if any of these clauses as included.
In some cases, the solar power company might have the right to lease the roof space indefinitely. If they have not opted out of the 1954 Landlord & Tenants Act (which states that a commercial tenant has the right to remain even after the agreed term of a lease has ended) then legally they could continue to rent the roof area beyond the typical 25 year term if they wanted.

[Sherlock]

Being in a contract for years with the solar panel generation can put a lot of people off if you try to sell the house later. My Dad's neighbour is tied into a long contract with his solar panels and its devalued the house by about £25k when it was valued for sale.

I don't understand this - what is it about the contract that devalues the house? I would have thought having solar panels would add value if anything? Thanks

The issue is that when the house is sold, the contract remains on the property so the new owner has to take that on as well even if they don't want it. If it was just solar panels that came with the house then yes, there may be some benefit in terms of value, but not when the solar panels come with a contract attached.

Many homes fitted with solar panels will have had them installed free of charge by a solar power company. The homeowner will have leased the panels from the solar power company, usually for a 25-year term, who then has the right to the Feed-in Tariff payments. The homeowner enjoys low energy bills plus the prospect of the Feed-in Tariff after 25 years.

However, over time, some drawbacks with this initiative have become apparent:

Some mortgage lenders have issues with the fact that a large part of the roof is leased to a solar power company, not owned outright by the homeowner so make sure you check this with your lender.
Many of the original solar power companies have ceased trading so it may prove difficult to find out who owns the panels.
If the power company has assigned the management of the panels to an agent, the agent may charge a fee when the house is sold.
The terms of the lease with the power company may mean that the homeowner has to gain consent to extend the house or even to sell it! There may also be a clause that means the homeowner has to pay compensation for lost revenue if the solar panels have to be temporarily removed for roof repairs so make sure your solicitor requests a copy of the lease so he can identify if any of these clauses as included.
In some cases, the solar power company might have the right to lease the roof space indefinitely. If they have not opted out of the 1954 Landlord & Tenants Act (which states that a commercial tenant has the right to remain even after the agreed term of a lease has ended) then legally they could continue to rent the roof area beyond the typical 25 year term if they wanted.

Thanks for explaining - makes some sense to me now.
I hadn't realised the solar panels were leased - I assumed you bought them yourself.
I need to research this more - currently renting but looking to buy a house and was thinking I would add solar panels to it when I do. Obviously a lot to learn for me.

[durhamlad]

Thanks for explaining - makes some sense to me now.
I hadn't realised the solar panels were leased - I assumed you bought them yourself.
I need to research this more - currently renting but looking to buy a house and was thinking I would add solar panels to it when I do. Obviously a lot to learn for me.

When I researched solar panels the advice from Which? at the time was do NOT lease, especially now that the feed-in-tariff government scheme has ended as the return on investment is much longer, plus selling the house is problematic because potential new owners may well not want to pick up the lease.

The Which? research was also non-committal on how it may affect the selling price, or as a desirable feature, since there are plenty of folks who don't like the appearance of solar panels regardless of their cost savings or reduced-emissions badge.