South African homeowners have invested heavily in solar power systems over the past few years, largely in response to load shedding, rising electricity tariffs and growing concerns about energy security. Today, a typical grid-tied residential solar system can cost anywhere between R70 000 and R150 000, depending on the size of the home, its energy requirements and battery back-up capacity, while installations for larger homes can cost considerably more.
Given this level of investment, one of the strongest trends in the residential property market currently is the growing interest in the analysis and certification of home solar systems to demonstrate the real value they deliver.
For many homeowners, solar has traditionally been viewed as a lifestyle convenience or emergency power solution. But as electricity prices continue to rise, buyers are becoming increasingly interested in understanding exactly how much a solar system reduces monthly costs, how efficiently it performs and what financial savings it is likely to generate over time.
And now Chas Everitt has partnered with the developers of the new LookSee energy performance certification system for existing homes that will enable home sellers to provide all that information – and more.
Until recently, there has been no formal way for owners or prospective buyers to assess how efficiently an existing home uses electricity or to compare one home’s environmental performance with another. So while new developments have increasingly been able to promote their “green” equipment and credentials, millions of existing homeowners have had no way to prove the value of their investment in solar by accurately quantifying their lower electricity costs over time, or to measure the energy efficiency of their properties in comparison to similar homes.
Now, however, the new system changes this, by analysing data such as electricity bills, solar inverter readings and carbon performance to measure and certify a home’s actual energy efficiency. And importantly, the process can be easily completed without inspections, disruptive site visits or complex compliance requirements.
Homeowners just need to contact their Chas Everitt agent to access the service and complete a short consent form granting read-only access to their inverter. The system will then review the past 12 months of electricity use, including how much came from the grid and how much from the solar power system, and this information will be independently checked and verified by the South African National Energy Development Institute (SANEDI) before being certified.
Each certified property will receive two ratings: an energy rating, which measures how efficiently the home uses electricity compared with similar homes, and a carbon rating, which reflects the home’s environmental impact based on its energy use and renewable energy contribution.
And we believe this certification is set to become a powerful market differentiator for our clients, by giving prospective buyers a clear understanding of what savings they can realistically expect when purchasing a pre-owned home with a solar power system.
In practical terms, solar systems could increasingly shift from being seen as a desirable extra to becoming a measurable property asset that supports stronger asking prices and faster sales, especially in times like these when affordability remains a key consideration for most buyers.
