If you are looking at homes built between 1948 and 1970 in Henrietta, Brighton, Pittsford or Honeoye Falls, you will run into 100 amp electrical service constantly. Sometimes it is the original service. Sometimes it was upgraded from 60 amp fuses in the 1970s and has not been touched since. This post explains what a 100 to 200 amp upgrade actually involves in Monroe County: what triggers the need, who does the work, what the sequence looks like, and how to handle it inside a purchase contract without blowing up the deal or overpaying for it.

I am not going to give you a price. Electrical pricing in this market moves, it varies by house, and any number I quote here would be stale by the time you read it. What I will give you is the list of variables that move the number, so you can read a quote and know whether it is reasonable.

Do I actually need 200 amp service?

No, not unless something in your plans demands it. A 100 amp service is not a code violation and it is not a defect. Plenty of three bedroom ranches in West Henrietta run fine on 100 amps because the heat is gas, the water heater is gas, the range is gas, and the dryer is the only big electric load in the house.

The upgrade becomes necessary, or close to it, when you add load. Common triggers I see:

• An EV charger. A Level 2 charger typically wants a dedicated 40 to 60 amp circuit. That is a large bite out of a 100 amp service.
• Central air conditioning added to a house that never had it. Very common in mid century Brighton and Pittsford homes with radiators or baseboard heat.
• A heat pump, either as a full system or a ductless setup.
• Converting from gas to an electric range or electric dryer.
• Finishing a basement, which adds lighting, receptacles and often a bathroom.
• An addition or a kitchen renovation with an induction cooktop, double oven, or a lot of under cabinet and recessed lighting.

There is also the case where the panel itself is the problem regardless of amperage. If the house has a Federal Pacific Stab-Lok panel or a Zinsco panel, replacement is worth doing on its own merits, and while the electrician is in there, going to 200 amps costs less than doing it as a separate job later.

What does an electrical service upgrade in Monroe County involve?

More than swapping a box on the wall. A full 100 to 200 amp service upgrade touches the utility, the municipality and the inside of your house, in that order of scheduling pain.

The typical scope covers:

• New service entrance cable from the weatherhead or the meter down to the panel, sized for 200 amps.
• New meter socket, because the old one is often rated below 200 amps.
• New main panel with more breaker spaces. This is frequently the real reason people upgrade. A 1955 panel may be physically full.
• Grounding and bonding brought to current standards. Older homes often have a single ground rod, or a ground clamped to a water pipe that has since been replaced with plastic. Expect new ground rods.
• Moving and relabeling every circuit into the new panel.
• Possible mast work if the overhead drop attaches to a pipe that is too short, rusted or pulled loose from the fascia. This is common on older ranches where the mast has been tugged on by ice for sixty years.

If the service is underground, which you see in some later 1960s subdivisions, the work shifts from mast to trench and the coordination with RG&E changes.

Who has to be involved besides the electrician?

Three parties, and the electrician normally manages all of them.

RG&E. The utility has to disconnect the drop so the electrician can work on the service entrance safely, then reconnect and reinstall the meter afterward. That appointment is the single biggest scheduling variable in the whole job. Your electrician submits the request. You do not.

Your municipality. An electrical permit is required. In Monroe County the permit comes from the town or village: Town of Henrietta, Town of Pittsford, Village of Honeoye Falls, Town of Rush, Town of Mendon, Town of Brighton, and so on. Each has its own fee schedule and its own counter hours. Rules and fees change, so confirm current requirements with the building department for the specific municipality rather than assuming your neighbor's experience still applies.

A third party electrical inspector. New York does not have the town inspector sign off on the wiring itself in most of these jurisdictions. An approved electrical inspection agency inspects and issues a certificate, which then goes to the town and to RG&E. Keep that certificate. A future buyer's attorney will ask for it.

How long does the work take?

The electrician is usually on site for one day. Getting to that day takes longer. The realistic sequence looks like this.

Plan in weeks, not days. If you are buying and you want this done before you move in, start the conversation with an electrician during your inspection contingency period, not after closing.

What the home inspection will and will not tell you

A general home inspector will report the service size, the panel brand, obvious double taps, missing knockouts, and whether the grounding looks present. That is useful. It is not an electrical evaluation.

What the inspector will not do is calculate your load, open every junction box, or tell you what a 200 amp panel upgrade in Rochester NY should cost at your specific house. If the report flags anything beyond cosmetic, bring in a licensed electrician for a written quote while your contingency is still open. A quote is a number you can negotiate with. An inspector's note saying "recommend evaluation by qualified electrician" is not.

Things I watch for in mid century Monroe County houses specifically:

• Knob and tube remnants in attics and the backs of closets, often left live after a partial rewire.
• Aluminum branch circuit wiring from the mid to late 1960s. This is a separate issue from service size and it does not get solved by a new panel.
• Fuse boxes still in use as subpanels in garages and basements.
• Panels in finished basements that were drywalled around with no clearance in front. Code requires working space, and an inspector will call it.
• Outdoor meters on the side of the house that got buried behind a deck addition.

How do I handle this in a purchase offer?

Get the quote first, then decide what to ask for. Three options, in the order I usually recommend them.

1. Price it in and move on. If the service is functional and you simply want more capacity for your own plans, that is an improvement you are choosing, not a defect the seller created. Budget for it and ask for nothing. This keeps your offer clean, which matters when inventory is tight.
2. Ask for a credit. If there is a genuine safety issue, an obsolete panel brand, or missing grounding, a seller credit at closing lets you pick your own electrician and control the work. This is usually better than asking the seller to do it, because you have no say in who they hire.
3. Ask the seller to complete it before closing. Use this when a lender or insurer requires it. Some insurance carriers will not bind a policy on certain panel brands. If that is your situation, say so plainly in the request, because it is a financing and insurability problem, not a wish list item.

One note on timing. If you ask the seller to complete the work before closing, understand that the RG&E scheduling step is outside everyone's control. Build slack into your closing date or you will be asking for an extension.

Common questions

Does a 100 amp service hurt a home's resale value in Monroe County?

On its own, rarely. Buyers of mid century homes in Henrietta, Brighton and Pittsford expect to see 100 amp service and most are not surprised by it. What does cost you at resale is an obsolete or hazard-flagged panel, visible amateur wiring, or a missing electrical certificate after work was done. Those turn into inspection negotiations. A clean, labeled, properly grounded 100 amp panel does not.

Can I add an EV charger without upgrading to 200 amps?

Sometimes. A licensed electrician can run a load calculation on your existing service, and some chargers can be set to a lower amperage or paired with a load management device that pauses charging when the house draws heavily. That said, if the panel is already full of breakers, you are likely paying for a subpanel or a service upgrade either way. Get the load calculation before you buy the charger.

Do I need a permit for an electrical service upgrade in Monroe County?

Yes. Every municipality in the county requires an electrical permit for service work, and the job also needs a certificate from an approved third party electrical inspection agency before RG&E will reconnect. Your electrician normally pulls the permit and schedules the inspection. Ask for copies of both the permit and the final certificate, and keep them with your closing documents.

Is it worth upgrading before I list my house?

Usually not, unless the existing panel is a known problem brand or the insurance carrier has already flagged it. Most sellers do better keeping the cash and handling it as a credit if a buyer raises it. If the panel is unsafe, fix it, because it will surface in the inspection anyway and it will cost you more under deadline pressure.

What if the house has knob and tube wiring too?

Treat that as a separate project. A service upgrade replaces the panel and the service entrance, not the branch circuits running through your walls. Some insurance carriers restrict coverage on active knob and tube, so check with your agent during the contingency period. Get a rewiring quote alongside the service quote so you are looking at the full picture before you commit.

Looking at a mid century home and unsure what the panel is telling you?

I have been in a lot of these basements. If you are weighing a house in Henrietta, Pittsford, Brighton, Rush, Mendon or Honeoye Falls and the electrical is part of the decision, I can walk you through what is normal for the vintage, what to get quoted, and how to write it into an offer. Book a time with me here and bring the inspection report.

Khem Kadariya

About this data

The figures in this post were compiled from publicly available sources including Zillow, Houzeo, Movoto, RochesterFirst and FRED (Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis), along with other public market data. Real estate numbers change quickly, and these were accurate as of September 2026. For current figures on a specific home, street, or town, ask me directly rather than relying on a published average.