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What is required for solar panels?

Properties with Solar Panels

The ownership and debt financing structures commonly found with solar panels are key to determining whether the panels are third-party owned, personal property of the homeowner, or a fixture to the real estate. Common ownership or financing structures include: 

  • borrower-owned panels,
  • leasing agreements,
  • separately financed solar panels (where the panels serve as collateral for debt distinct from any existing mortgage); or
  • power purchase agreements.

Fannie Mae will purchase or securitize a mortgage loan on a property with solar panels. If the borrower is, or will be, the owner of the solar panels (meaning the panels were a cash purchase, were included in the home purchase price, were otherwise financed and repaid in full, or are secured by the existing first mortgage), our standard requirements apply (for example, appraisal, insurance, and title).

Properties with solar panels and other energy efficient items financed with a PACE loan are not eligible for delivery to Fannie Mae if the PACE loan is not paid in full prior to or at closing. For additional information, see B5-3.4-01, Property Assessed Clean Energy Loans.

Lenders are responsible for determining the ownership and any financing structure of the subject property’s solar panels in order to properly underwrite the loan and maintain first lien position of the mortgage. When financing is involved, lenders may be able to make this determination by evaluating the borrower’s credit report for solar-related debt and by asking the borrower for a copy of all related documentation for the loan. The lender must also review the title report to determine if the related debt is reflected in the land records associated with the subject property. If insufficient documentation is available and the ownership status of the panels is unclear, no value for the panels may be attributed to the property value on the appraisal unless the lender obtains a UCC “personal property” search that confirms the solar panels are not claimed as collateral by any non-mortgage lender.

Note: A Uniform Commercial Code (UCC) financing statement that covers personal property and is not intended as a “fixture filing” must be filed in the office identified in the relevant state’s adopted version of the UCC.

Lenders are responsible for ensuring the appraiser has accurate information about the ownership structure of the solar panels and that the appraisal appropriately addresses any impact to the property’s value. Separately financed solar panels must not contribute to the value of the property unless the related documents indicate the panels cannot be repossessed in the event of default on the associated financing. Any contributory value for owned or financed solar panels must comply with Energy Efficiency Improvements in B4-1.3-05, Improvements Section of the Appraisal Report.

The following table summarizes some of the specific underwriting criteria that must be applied depending on the details of any non-mortgage financing for the solar panels.

If the solar panels are... Then the lender must...
Financed and collateralized -- the solar panels are collateral for the separate debt used to purchase the panels, but they are a fixture to the real estate because a UCC fixture filing* has been filed for the panels in the real estate records
  • Obtain and review the credit report, title report, appraisal, and/or UCC fixture filing*, related promissory note and related security agreement that reflect the terms of the secured loan;
  • Include the debt obligation in the DTI ratio calculation;
  • Provided that the panels cannot be repossessed for default on the financing terms, instruct the appraiser to consider the solar panels in the value of the property (based on standard appraisal requirements); and
  • Include the solar panels in other debt secured by the real estate in the CLTV ratio calculation because a UCC fixture filing* is of record in the land records.

Note: If a UCC fixture filing* is in the land records as a priority senior to the mortgage loan, it must be subordinated.

Financed and collateralized -- the solar panels are reported to be collateral for separate (non-mortgage) debt used to purchase the panels, but do not appear on the title report
  • Obtain and review documentation sufficient to confirm the terms of the secured loan (such as copies of the credit report, title report, any UCC financing statement, related promissory note or related security agreement);
  • Include the debt obligation in the DTI ratio calculation;
  • Instruct the appraiser not to provide contributory value of the solar panels towards the appraised value because the panels are collateral for another debt;
  • Not include the panels in the LTV ratio calculation; and
  • Not include the debt in the other debt secured by the real estate in the CLTV ratio calculation since the security agreement or any UCC financing statement treat the panels as personal property not affixed to the home.

*A fixture filing is a UCC-1 financing statement authorized and made in accordance with the UCC adopted in the state in which the related real property is located. It covers property that is, or will be, affixed to improvements to such real property. It contains both a description of the collateral that is, or is to be, affixed to that such property, and a description of such real property. It is filed in the same office that mortgages are recorded under the law of the state in which the real property is located. Filing in the land records provides notice to third parties, including title insurance companies, of the existence and perfection of a security interest in the fixture. If properly filed, the security interest in the described fixture has priority over the lien of a subsequently recorded mortgage.

If the solar panels are leased from or owned by a third party under a power purchase agreement or other similar lease arrangement, the following requirements apply (whether to the original agreement or as subsequently amended).

Lender Requirements for Properties with Solar Panels that are Leased or Covered by a Power Purchase Agreement
  The lender must obtain and review copies of the lease or power purchase agreement.
  The monthly lease payment must be included in the DTI ratio calculation unless the lease is structured to
  • provide delivery of a specific amount of energy at a fixed payment during a given period, and
  • have a production guarantee that compensates the borrower on a prorated basis in the event the solar panels fail to meet the energy output required for in the lease for that period.

Payments under power purchase agreements where the payment is calculated solely based on the energy produced may be excluded from the DTI ratio.

  The value of the solar panels cannot be included in the appraised value of the property.
  The value of the solar panels must not be included in the LTV ratio calculation, even if a precautionary UCC filing is recorded because the documented lease or power purchase agreement status takes priority.

Note: A “precautionary” UCC filing is one that lessors often file to put third parties on notice of their claimed ownership interest in the property described in it. When the only property described in the UCC filing as collateral is the solar equipment covered by the lease or power purchase agreement, and not the home or underlying land, such a precautionary UCC filing is acceptable (and a minor impediment to title), as long as the loan is underwritten in accordance with this topic.

  The value of the solar panels must not be included in other debt secured by real estate in the CLTV ratio calculation because the documented lease or power purchase agreement status takes priority.
  The property must maintain access to an alternate source of electric power that meets community standards.
  The lease or power purchase agreement must indicate that
  • any damage that occurs as a result of installation, malfunction, manufacturing defect, or the removal of the solar panels is the responsibility of the owner of the equipment and the owner must be obligated to repair the damage and return the improvements to their original or prior condition (for example, sound and watertight conditions that are architecturally consistent with the home);
  • the owner of the solar panels agrees not to be named loss payee (or named insured) on the property owner’s property insurance policy covering the residential structure on which the panels are attached. As an alternative to this requirement, the lender may verify that the owner of the solar panels is not a named loss payee (or named insured) on the property owner’s property insurance policy; and
  • in the event of foreclosure, the lender or assignee has the discretion to
    • terminate the lease/agreement and require the third-party owner to remove the equipment;
    • become, without payment of any transfer or similar fee, the beneficiary of the borrower’s lease/agreement with the third party; or
    • enter into a new lease/agreement with the third party, under terms no less favorable than the prior owner.
  Any exceptions to coverage on the title insurance policy for recorded instruments relating to the solar panels must comply with B7-2-05, Title Exceptions and Impediments.

For additional information, see B2-3-04, Special Property Eligibility Considerations 

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