Solar Panels

Dan-Dan

Morning all


Solar panels - leased

bad or good?

cheers

davidmcn

Dan-Dan wrote: »

Interested in hearing any thoughts on a solar panel system thats leased not owned as well

Do you want a long term tenant on your roof?

Is your mortgage lender happy with the terms of the lease? (some leases are more acceptable than others, but it's still a complication)

theartfullodger

Panels are leased: So they (& the bits connecting them to house electrics) belong to someone else, so you're not buy "the house" but but "The rest of the house apart from panels & bits". And when there is, say, damage or a leak related to them???

Do the deeds reflect the mixed ownership of the building?

See if mortgage lender is happy: I'd expect a significant under-valuation. And don't see why the rest of us should be paying occupant anyway..

Sam12341

Hi!
I'm currently buying a house with leased solar panels on from the company a shade greener.
My solicitor has expressed what a massive pain they are but I don't think we're too bothered and it hasn't really proved problematic with the house sale although it probably has made it take a little more time.

Googling mortgage offers and solar panels does return some scary results. It looks like my solicitor had to provide a couple of documents to Nationwide (who our mortgage will be with) but they have seemingly always responded with no issues. I think one document was building regs for the panels and another some sort of certificate to prove the company is legit.

I'm not too sure what to think of them overall - it wasn't enough of a reason not to buy the house. Get the solicitor if you haven't already to get the contract from the company. Ours seemed to have a couple of good conditions like they can be removed three times over the lease period for a max of 3 months if you wanted to do home improvements. Also if you can prove the panels are reducing the saleability of the house they will remove them.


Also - what questions are on your to ask list regarding them? I do worry I have missed something important about them!

Sam12341

theartfullodger wrote: »

Panels are leased: So they (& the bits connecting them to house electrics) belong to someone else, so you're not buy "the house" but but "The rest of the house apart from panels & bits". And when there is, say, damage or a leak related to them???

Do the deeds reflect the mixed ownership of the building?

See if mortgage lender is happy: I'd expect a significant under-valuation. And don't see why the rest of us should be paying occupant anyway..

Not sure about deeds but in the contract for the solar panels on the house I'm currently buying it says any upkeep or damage costs will be paid for by the company. It also didn't affect our mortgage valuation or offer, this must be a lot more common now for mortgage companies - they are popping up all over the place ! I was a little concerned that we may have been lucky with our mortgage and when we come to remortgage it could be problematic but we'll see...

Davesnave

I presume you've found this thread?

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/3872445

And this one:

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/62958076#Comment_62958076

Dan-Dan

davidmcn wrote: »

Do you want a long term tenant on your roof?

Is your mortgage lender happy with the terms of the lease? (some leases are more acceptable than others, but it's still a complication)

I think, depending on the terms of the lease that this sounds worse than the reality

We wouldnt be using a mortgage

DRP

Our attached neighbour has solar panels.

We (and him) have 'long term tenants' - the sky rats love to nest under them, and they're sh1tting everywhere (my velux have turned green).

DaftyDuck

Dan - With a new house like that one, the roof should last OK under the panels (but it does depend on how well they were fixed. It's worth checking the terms of the lease very carefully (I have seen householder responsible for accidental damage... think football/cricket ball). Removal/refitting isn't that difficult, and shouldn't be too expensive, if roof did require repairs. You might have to pay to have it removed by the installer.

Do remember, although you may not need a mortgage, the buyer buying when you sell in 4 to 20 years may well need one, and the mortgage company may baulk at that down the line.

You do get the (probable) benefit of free daytime electricity, and you can work out what that would mean to you... probably £150 a year.

It should knock quite a bit off the price of the house - and so it should! Given two identical hoses, I'd pay more for the one with no panels, as I don't think it's worth the few thousand I might (just) save over 25 years.

davidmcn

Dan-Dan wrote: »

I think, depending on the terms of the lease that this sounds worse than the reality

We wouldnt be using a mortgage

Will you be using a solicitor who understands "odd" types of lease and can give you appropriate advice?

As already mentioned, the fact you don't need a mortgage isn't all that important - you don't want to create an unmortgageable situation for any future sale/refinance.

D00gie72

I sold a house with leased solar panels in 2014. If the panels on this house you are looking at are leased, I'm not sure why they have given you the FiT and export tariffs - as you wont get those the owner of the panels will.
Sounds like you need to double check what these panels are - leased or owned. If they are leased you will need to check that the lease for the panels is CML (council of mortgage lenders) compliant. The vendor should know - or get their sols to check.
If the panels are owned - you will receive the FiT and export tariffs and the panels should be viewed as any other fitted appliance on a house purchase.


There is a lot of negativity with regards leased panels about - largely due to scaremongering comments found on the internet. Really as long as the lease is compliant - and they have the relevant building control certificates there's really no need to be worried. You will get a lot of free electricity - and someone else is responsible for the maintenance of the panels. With the panels we used to have, generally I am at home during the day and we saved between 30-40% on our electricity bills.