Owners of Annapolis real estate who want to mark improvements to their property, both for themselves and more possible resale value have likely heard that anything that makes a home more energy efficient is a good idea. Overall, energy efficiency is good, however, if you specifically hope to recoup some of your investment when you sell you need to think about the are where you live.
Research conducted by UCLA and UC San Diego tried to look at the return on investment for installing solar panels, the same way people have come up with formulas to predict the value of renovating a bathroom or a kitchen.
The Baltimore Sun [http://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/business/hancock/blog/2011/07/will_solar_panels_increase_the.html]editorialized the findings noting that
“If you live in a neighborhood full of tree huggers and Prius drivers, the propensity to pay extra for installed solar is slightly greater, as you might expect. People in neighborhoods with Ford F-series pickups in the driveway, on the other hand, are not so inclined.”
Some people make improvements because they will enjoy them in the meantime and they know it will make their property more valuable in the long run. There are others who make improvements right before they get ready to sell because they are looking to increase the value of their property. There is no right or wrong way to do this, as long as you are reasonably sure that your goal for making the improvements will be met.
