Community Impact

Research Shows

Solar Arrays Cause a Significant Impact to Home Values

Home Values Decline

According to a City and County of Denver Cited Study
0 %
When solar arrays are built within 1 mile
0 %
When Solar Arrays are built on a Farm in Suburban Communities
0 %
When solar arrays are built within 0.1 mile
0 %

Study Shows housing prices decline within 1 mile of solar array

Study reports that property values within one mile decline by 1.7% and substantially larger negative effects (-7%) for properties within 0.1 miles.

 

Suburban communities where  solar projects were built on a farm or forested property have a large impact, showing housing prices within a mile of the array dropped by 5%.

 

Gaur, V. and C. Lang. (2020). Property Value Impacts of Commercial-Scale Solar Energy in Massachusetts and Rhode Island

 

In a study of resident preferences, respondents dislike solar development on farmlands and forests, and need to be compensated.

 

Lang, C., V. Gaur, G. Howard, and R. Quainoo. (2021). Incorporating Resident Preferences into Policy Recommendations for Utility-Scale Solar Siting in Rhode Island.

IMpact Study
Resident Preferences

Six-state study finds that homes within 0.5 miles of LSPVP experience an average home price reduction of 1.5% compared to homes
2–4 miles away.

Large-scale photovoltaic projects (LSPVP), defined here as ground mounted photovoltaic generation facilities with at least 1 MW of DC generation capacity.

 

 

Salma Elmallah, Ben Hoen, K. Sydny Fujita, Dana Robson, Eric Brunner. Elsevier. Shedding light on large-scale solar impacts: An analysis of property values and proximity to photovoltaics across six U.S. states.

Solar Impact Study
Solar belongs on on rooftops, near highways, commercial, industrial-zoned land, marginal or contaminated areas.
Not on agricultural or recreational land.

Carroll County prohibits the construction of community solar arrays on agricultural land.

This decision comes after months of extensive debates, and public hearings.

Read Article

Research on property value impacts near utility-scale solar installations suggests several policy interventions may be appropriate.

  • Regulations around an installation’s
    appearance and land use may help minimize impacts on property values. 

 

  • Incorporating vegetation to block the visibility of solar panels

 

  • Engaging the public in the design process.

 

  • Consideration of housing density by distance around the proposed facility should help identify the scope of potential impact.

 

Leila Al-Hamoodah, L, Kavita Koppa, Eugenie Schieve, D. Cale Reeves, Ben Hoen, Joachim Seel and Varun Rai (2018). An Exploration of Property-Value Impacts Near Utility-Scale Solar Installations 

IMpact Study
The majority of Trailmark homes are within 1/2 Mile of the planned .96 - 1.2 megawatt solar farm
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