Tamworth Estate Agents, Next Place Property Agents, has today been made aware of unforeseen issues over houses with solar panels.
Having personally had people knock at my front door offering “free solar panels”, there are some things that these companies (at least in my experience) are not making home owners aware of, which has today, given a house vendor an additional unexpected moving cost of £6000!!
These companies generally give you 2 options:
1 – Buy the solar panels and start saving on electricity (and make your money back in 20 years)!!
OR:
2 – Let the company put the panels on your roof for free, you save a bit on electricity, they make a bit too.
With the second option, what you are entering in to is a lease of your roof space, and this is where the issues can arise. After speaking with a local conveyancing solicitor, Sharon Lightwood, she said
“I was due to complete on a sale today and the buyers solicitors search has just revealed a 25 year lease signed in May by the seller with regards airspace for solar panels. This now means we cannot complete, not yet anyway. The seller cannot get out of the lease unless he buys the panels. Any lender of the buyer will need to be provided with a copy of the Lease to see if it is acceptable, and their consent obtained. Not all of these leases are acceptable. A homeowner really should be getting some advice on the lease first and if they have a mortgage on the property they need their lenders consent to the lease first before signing. I had one a few months ago and the lender would not accept the lease and the buyer had to withdraw. The seller is now having to buy the solar panels outright for over £6,000. There was no get out clause so to speak of in the Lease.”
Our advice. Get the contract validated before you sign.