How to Overcome HOA Objections to Installing Solar Panels.
The Pursuit of Solar Power for Your Home.
You love your house and you want it to be great in every way.
In a quest to streamline costs, reduce your carbon footprint and make your home run more efficiently, you’ve done the research and decided solar power is the best renewable energy source for your home, not to mention a great investment. You’ve determined your homes’ power needs and you already know your roof gets great sun.
You’ve taken the time and done your homework, educating yourself about the different options available and you’re confident you’ve found the best product on the market, the Sol-Ark all-in-one Generator System.
You’ve chosen the award-winning Sol-Ark system for all of its great features, like the color display with remote monitoring, Wi-Fi capabilities and 10-year warranty. It gives you confidence to know that reviewers say it’s easy and fast to install because as an all-in-one pre-wired system, it includes the inverter and charge controller and has no external components like fuses and breakers. You appreciate that the company is veteran-owned, based in the USA, and offers engineer-level support 7 days a week, along with great tutorials on their website. It’s clear that their innovative design is efficient and cost-effective, and they provide easy financing options.
As part of your extensive preparation, you’ve submitted your intent to install solar panels on your roof to your neighborhood Homeowner’s Association (HOA). You’re so ready to get this project started, but you know you have to get their approval first.
After patiently waiting, you finally get a letter from the HOA. You quickly open it, optimistic that with this final step you’ll be able to make the call and get your installation date scheduled. But the HOA has denied your request, saying they consider solar panels an eyesore! They further advise that you cannot move forward with installing solar panels on your roof. However, they respect the solar power is part of life these days.
You might be feeling defeated at this moment, stuck in the dark with your electric company. In your experience, the HOA represents a faceless institution doggedly enforcing arbitrary rules they made up themselves. You’re just not sure you’re up for a fight with them, are your dreams for a solar-powered home dashed?
What can you do? Read on to learn about your rights as a homeowner and how to overcome your HOA’s objections.
Overcoming Obstacles to Installing Solar Panels
First things first, take a deep breath! You still have options. It might be as simple as reading through your HOA bylaws or checking state law to see if they have the right to deny your request. In other cases, you may be able to work with your HOA to negotiate the placement of panels. Installers have many options available to placate aesthetic objections, from specialty hardware to solar “skins” that are custom-built to fit your solar panels and to exactly match your roof’s color.
- Get to Know Your HOA Bylaws
Comb through those bylaws to see what is and isn’t written in them. The HOA may not be able to flat out deny your request if their bylaws haven’t been updated to include specific verbiage. You may also discover that they will allow installation if certain criteria are met. These could be as basic as making sure that any installation equipment on the roof matches your roof’s color or requiring that solar panels installed on rooftops are not visible from the public right of way.
- Check your State Law
It’s a common misconception among homeowners to think that their HOA can prevent the installation of solar panels. But that’s simply not true – over half the states, including TX, AZ, FL, and LA, have enacted what are called “Solar Access Rights”, preventing HOAs from limiting the installation of solar panels. These are state-level laws that prohibit any entity from denying you permission to install solar panels on your property. Although they can still give you a hard time about placement, they can’t impair the efficiency of the system or make it more expensive, meaning a compromise can usually be reached.
- Educate your Homeowner’s Association about the amazing benefits of going Solar!
Let’s face it, your HOA is comprised of your fellow residents and those folks might have outdated ideas about solar power and everything that goes with it. This is an excellent opportunity to tell your neighbors how great solar energy really is! Here are just a few benefits.
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- Solar panels provide major environmental benefits and they fight climate change by reducing air pollution created by energy production, which pollutes our air even more than cars do.
- Did you know that solar power not only saves you on your electricity bill, it also increases the value of your home? According to research funded by the Department of Energy, buyers are willing to pay more for homes with rooftop solar panels, translating to about $4 per watt of solar power generated. This means that for every $1 in electric bill savings, your home value increases up to $20!
- Solar power promotes energy independence for every American. This means not only eliminating the need to depend on the power grid, it also frees families from dependence on foreign oil sources.
- Sol-Ark support to the rescue!
If all else fails, don’t get frustrated and give up, call us! With our network of hundreds of trusted Installers and Distributors across the country, we can help get you in touch with a local installer who knows your state laws and how to work within them.
Sol-Ark makes the dream of having clean, renewable, free solar energy supplying power to your home easy, convenient, and affordable. We are committed to helping you make your dream come true – our whole mission is to help families be less dependent on our vulnerable power grid in an affordable way. So if you’re having trouble with your HOA or financing, need help with finding an installer or just have questions, don’t be discouraged, we’re only a click away at Sol-Ark!
