Good news for solar users in Cape Town

 ·17 May 2023

Cape Town residents will not see the municipal value of their properties increase if they have installed a solar power system, so rates should stay the same.

Due to the adverse effects of load shedding, more South Africans have been turning to solar systems to generate electricity.

Although solar systems are quite expensive, with the government and banks introducing a number of ways to alleviate the costs, Cape Town property prices are yet to be affected by solar systems.

Speaking to CapeTalk, the City of Cape Town municipal valuer Llewellyn Louw said that the sales value of properties with solar and without solar do not show any substantial differences. He did, however, stress that the data remains limited.

In theory, the addition of solar panels to a property should increase its value, but that trend is yet to be observed.

However, he said that the situation may change in the future due to the energy crisis.

“Of course, the situation may change in the future as solar systems become relatively more valuable, especially if load shedding continues to bite.”

Although the situation may change, he said that the general valuations of properties will not be altered if there is a solar system present.

The city will implement its 2022 general valuation roll on 1 July 2023, which will remain in place for at least three years.

This means that solar infrastructure will not affect the municipal value of a property for at least three years.

He did warn that solar systems may be part of future general valuations and that the city is aware of which properties have those solar following a process where citizens registered their systems with the city.

Despite Louw saying that solar systems are yet to increase the municipal value of a property, ooba home loans said that solar systems have already started increasing the listing value of properties.

According to ooba, several studies have shown that solar panels have increased the value of property by 3 to 4%.

However, it did stress that the increase in property value is dependent on several factors.

This includes the size of the installation is crucial, as the number of solar panels that can be installed on a roof impacts how much a consumer can save on electricity.

Moreover, the quality of panels affects their lifespan, while the warranty of solar panels is key as they need to work for a long time.

Location is often key for property value, and this is no different for solar, as it directly affects how much sunlight the house can receive.


Read: Red flags for South Africa’s new rooftop solar tax break

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