By Barbara Eldredge via MIT News

Sistine Solar.

No one would argue for the aesthetic beauty of the average solar panel – the dark, gridded rectangles blend into rooftops about as well as a penguin at a peacock party. But one MIT-born startup is hoping to change all that.

Sistine Solar creates panel systems that can be customized to visually match a shingled rooftop. A proprietary SolarSkin embedded in the panel reflects back an image while still letting light through to the photovoltaic cells below. Sistine Solar’s customization currently tacks on an additional 10% to the cost of a solar panel system, but the company is betting that homeowners will still prefer the camouflaged panels.

Their first residential installation wrapped in December, and already Sistine Solar has had hundreds of inquiries, particularly in Massachusetts and California.

“We think SolarSkin is going to catch on like wildfire,” said co-founder Senthil Balasubramanian. “There is a tremendous desire by homeowners to cut utility bills, and solar is finding reception with them – and homeowners care a lot about aesthetics.”

But they’re certainly not the only ones betting on the “aesthetic solar” trend. Electric car company Tesla is creating a line of rooftop solar tiles made from four different types of glass panels, ranging from a Tuscan glass tile to a textured glass tile. Italian company Dyaqua has started manufacturing photovoltaic roof tiles that appear indistinguishable from terra cotta, wood and stone. Sistine Solar’s apparent advantage among these companies is that you can install the camouflaged panels without needing to entirely re-roof your home.

Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, says vacation sales in 2016 tumbled for the second consecutive year and have fallen 36% from their recent peak high in 2014 (1.13 million).

“In several markets in the South and West – the two most popular destinations for vacation buyers – home prices have soared in recent years because substantial buyer demand from strong job growth continues to outstrip the supply of homes for sale,” he said. “With fewer bargain-priced properties to choose from and a growing number of traditional buyers, finding a home for vacation purposes became more difficult and less affordable last year.”

Added Yun, “The volatility seen in the financial markets in late 2015 through the early part of last year also put a dent in sales as some affluent households with money in stocks likely refrained from buying or delayed plans until after the election.”

Tight inventory conditions pushed the median sales price of both vacation and investment homes last year to levels not seen in roughly a decade. The median vacation home price was $200,000, up 4.2% from 2015 ($192,000) and the highest since 2006 (also $200,000). The median investment-home sales price was $155,000, up 8.0% from 2015 ($143,500) and the highest since 2005 ($183,500).

With home prices steadily rising, an increasing share of second-home buyers financed their purchase last year. The share of vacation buyers who paid fully in cash diminished to 28% (38% in 2015), while cash purchases by investors decreased to 35% from 39% in 2015 and 41% in 2014.

“Sales to individual investors reached their highest level since 2012 (1.20 million) as investors took advantage of record low mortgage rates and recognized the sizeable demand for renting in their market as renters struggle to become homeowners,” said Yun. “The ability to generate rental income or remodel a home to put back on a market with tight inventory is giving investors increased confidence in their ability to see strong returns from their home purchase.”

Vacation sales accounted for 12% of all transactions in 2016, which was the lowest share since 2012 (11%) and down from 16% in 2015. The portion of investment sales remained unchanged for the third consecutive year at 19%, and owner-occupied purchases increased to 70% (65% in 2015).

Vacation buyers’ typically earned $89,900 ($103,700 in 2015), while investment buyers had a household income of $82,000 ($95,800 in 2015). Both were most likely to purchase a single-family home in the South, with vacation buyers preferring a beach location and investors choosing a suburban area.

The top two reasons for buying a vacation home were to use for vacations or as a family retreat (42%) and for future retirement (18%), while investors mostly bought to generate income through renting (42%) and for potential price appreciation (16%).