Do Solar Panels Increase Home Value? What Studies Show

Owned solar panels usually make a house worth more. The largest U.S. study found buyers paid about $4 per watt of solar, roughly $15,000 for an average 3.6 kW system, and Zillow found homes with solar sold for 4.1% more on average. Leased panels are different: research has found no premium for homes with third-party-owned systems, and mortgage rules leave them out of the appraisal entirely.

This guide covers what the research found, why ownership matters more than anything else, how appraisers value solar, and what to check before you buy or sell a home with panels. It applies to rooftop systems on single-family homes in the U.S.

What the Research Found

Three patterns run through these studies.

Premiums are real but local. Berkeley Lab found premiums “across various states, housing and PV markets and home types.” Zillow’s premium ranged from 3.6% to 5.4% across the metro areas it named. A buyer in a high-rate state with retail net metering has more reason to pay for panels than one in a low-rate state with low export credits.

Value fades with age. Berkeley Lab found the market depreciates solar value over a system’s first 10 years faster than the panels lose output or than straight-line depreciation over their useful life would suggest. A two-year-old system is worth more to a buyer than a 12-year-old one.

The data is old. The largest studies cover sales before 2014, when solar cost far more per watt than today. Berkeley Lab noted in 2015 that premiums for individual homes were likely getting smaller as installed prices fell, and that the net cost of a system after incentives was a good predictor of the premium. The newest figures above come from a solar company’s analysis of California sales, which we could only read in summary, so treat its 5–10% range as indicative.

Owned vs. Leased: The Part That Decides It

How the panels are owned matters more than their size or brand.

• Owned outright or paid off. The panels are part of the house. Appraisers count them and buyers inherit the savings with no contract.
• Owned with a solar loan. You own the panels, but the loan may carry a lien or a UCC-1 fixture filing, a public notice of the lender’s claim on the equipment. Depending on what it covers, the buyer’s lender may require it to be paid off or released at closing, which would come out of your sale proceeds.
• Leased or on a power purchase agreement (PPA). A company owns the panels. The buyer has to qualify for and take over the contract, or you buy it out or pay to remove the system. Berkeley Lab’s 2017 study suggested that the contract’s obligations may offset the savings, which would explain why buyers paid neither more nor less.

The Federal Trade Commission tells shoppers to ask, before signing a lease or PPA, whether the contract can be transferred to a buyer, whether the buyer must meet credit requirements or pay fees, and whether the system can be moved. Since the 30% homeowner tax credit ended for systems installed after 2025, more installers are offering leases, so these questions matter more in 2026. Our guide to solar leases vs. buying compares the total costs.

How Appraisers Value Solar

Most U.S. mortgages follow Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac rules, and both draw the same line.

Leased and PPA panels are excluded. Fannie Mae’s Selling Guide says panels that are leased or financed through a PPA “must be considered personal property and not be included in the appraised value.” Freddie Mac’s guide says the same, and also excludes panels a lender could repossess if their financing went unpaid.

Owned panels must be recognized. Fannie Mae requires appraisers to compare the home’s energy features with those of comparable sales. They may use cost or income estimates to support that comparison, but they may not add value dollar for dollar from the equipment and installation cost, and they may not rely on cost or savings estimates alone.

That last rule is why a seller who paid $25,000 for panels should not expect a $25,000 bump in the appraisal. If few nearby sales include solar, the appraiser has little market evidence to work with. Sellers can help by giving the appraiser the system’s size, age, ownership papers and production records.

Lease payments and buyer qualification. Freddie Mac lets a lender leave a lease payment out of the buyer’s debt-to-income ratio only if the lease delivers a set amount of energy with a production guarantee, and a PPA payment only if it is based solely on energy produced. Payments on financed panels count as debt.

Does the Premium Cover the Cost?

Nobody has measured that for today’s market. Here is what the numbers do and don’t show:

• Berkeley Lab premium: about $4 per watt × 3,600 watts = $14,400, which the report rounds to roughly $15,000, for sales from 2002 to 2013, when installed prices were far higher than today.
• Today’s price: EnergySage reports a marketplace median of $2.57 per watt in the first half of 2026. A 7.6 kW system at that price would cost 7,600 × $2.57 = $19,532.

Per watt, the old $4 premium is higher than today’s $2.57 price, but that does not mean a new system would add $4 a watt now. Berkeley Lab found premiums tracked a system’s net cost after incentives, so as prices have fallen, premiums have likely fallen with them. Add fast depreciation in the first years and the rule against dollar-for-dollar appraisals, and installing solar just before a sale is a weak bet on resale value alone. Solar pays mostly through bill savings while you live in the house; our guide to the solar payback period shows how to estimate that, and the solar system size calculator estimates the system you would need.

Property Taxes

Added value can mean a higher assessment, but many states exempt it. The Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) says 36 states offer property tax exemptions that let homeowners leave the added value of a solar system out of their taxable valuation. Rules differ on how long the exemption lasts and whether you must apply, so check with your county assessor.

Checklist for Sellers

1. Find the ownership papers. Purchase contract, loan payoff letter, or lease or PPA with its transfer and buyout terms.
2. Search for a UCC-1 filing or lien on the property and arrange for it to be released or paid off at closing.
3. Gather 12 months of production data and utility bills to show buyers what the system saves.
4. Collect the warranties for panels, inverter and workmanship, and confirm who honors them. If your installer has closed, see our guide to what to do when a solar installer goes out of business.
5. Tell your agent to list the system as owned with its size in kW and year installed, so appraisers and buyers can find it.

Checklist for Buyers

1. Ask whether the system is owned, financed or leased, and get the documents before you make an offer.
2. For a lease or PPA, read the remaining term, monthly payment, yearly escalator and transfer requirements, and ask your lender how it will be treated.
3. Check the system’s age and remaining warranties for panels, inverter and workmanship, and who honors them.
4. Ask the utility whether the system’s current solar credit terms carry over to a new owner. Export credit rules vary by state and utility.

Limitations

The largest studies use sales from before 2014 and may overstate today’s premiums. The 2026 California figures come from a company analysis we read only in summary. None of these studies can predict your home’s value; a local appraiser or agent can. This is general information, not financial, tax or legal advice.

Sources and verification

Checked October 24, 2026.