Montgomery Simus | Rooftop Revolution: Where Homeowners Are Adopting Solar Panels

While more homeowners are adding solar panels to their homes in hopes of reducing their energy bills, adoption varies significantly across the country

To understand which housing markets are doing the most solar panel installation, ResiClub collaborated with the data experts at BatchService, a cutting-edge property intelligence and technology firm. Using their extensive database, BatchService’s team of data scientists analyzed over a decade of property data to pinpoint the states and counties with the most residential solar installation permits.

The epicenter of solar panel installation: California.

California’s position as No. 1 for residential solar installation permits isn’t surprising. The state has led the nation with renewable energy policies, including generous state and local incentives, tax credits, and mandates such as the 2020 building code requirement for all new California homes to include solar panels.

Located in the heart of Silicon Valley, Santa Clara County leads the entire nation in total residential solar installation permits that have been issued over the past decade, according to BatchService.

Santa Clara’s municipal utility, Silicon Valley Power, offers incentives for solar installations, further encouraging adoption.

It’s now gotten to the point that a glut of solar power is becoming an issue in California. But how do solar panels impact home values?

ResiClub did some digging; however, most of the research we found is from a few years ago.

A 2015 study by the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory found that homes with solar panels sold for an average premium of $15,000 compared to similar homes without solar installations.

In 2019, Zillow economists found that homes that year with solar-energy systems sold for 4.1% more on average than comparable homes without solar panels. For the median-valued home, that translated to an additional $9,274.

However, not all solar is the same.

A 2023 study by Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory found that homes within 0.5 miles of large-scale photovoltaic systems sold for 1.5% less than comparable homes located two to four miles away. The researchers wrote that: “For the mean selling price in our sample of roughly $400,000, a 1.5% diminution equates to roughly $6,000.”