We had panels fitted last August. It doesn’t pay to sell energy back to the grid at the moment, but self consumption is definitely worthwhile. Certainly here in the south it’s a good investment, if you’re not planning on moving any time soon.
Look into virtual battery tech, Urban Solar Energy in Lyon seem to be one of the market leaders. Let’s you “save” electricity you generate but don’t use for the night/another day but without having an actual battery. In effect they wind back your meter to the value generated but not consumed.
Looking at how it’s working out for us, I’d say break even will be achieved between 10 and 12 years in the future. But we now know solar panels last way longer than initially feared, so we’ll still be getting decent yield in 25 years.
In terms of looks, someone added panels during a roof renovation in the village here and they’re recessed, which does a great job. They’re much less noticeable.