Blog Post

The Solar Mandate

December 10, 2019

The exterior of an accessory dwelling unit (ADU) well-appointed with solar panels on its roof.





Starting January 1, 2020 all new construction in California will need to comply with Title 24 guidelines, which means adding solar. The new solar mandate will only affect new construction, which includes detached ADUs. If you are building an attached ADU, carve-out ADU, or garage conversion your project will not fall under these legislation changes.
While solar does have long term cost benefits, the necessity to add it to your project will increase construction costs. Depending on the size of your ADU, the additional price tag could be $7,000-10,000.

Submit your ADU for plan check in 2019, and you can avoid the mandate.

Many homeowners add solar to their properties, and when you crunch the numbers, solar makes long term financial sense. Panels are far more efficient and less expensive than just a few years ago. However, if you submit in 2019, the decision of whether or not to add solar will still be yours.

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