2025 Solar Incentives Guide for Charleston, IL - Tax Credits & Rebates
In this guide, we'll cover the latest solar incentives and rebates available in Charleston.
You'll learn about:
- Local & State Solar Incentives
- Federal Tax Credits (Updated for 2024 and beyond)
- Ways to optimize your solar investment
Solar installers are experts in maximizing your solar tax credits and rebates.
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What Solar Tax Credits, Incentives, and Rebates are Available in Charleston?
Special Assessment for Solar Energy Systems
Solar Renewable Energy Credits
Federal Residential Renewable Energy Tax Credit
Source: https://www.dsireusa.org/
Solar incentives are designed to make renewable energy usage more affordable via financial incentives for those who install solar panels on their homes. You may be eligible for various kinds of incentives, such as cash back, discounts or monthly utility bill credits, depending on your situation. Some incentives come from your specific utility company, county or municipality, some from the Illinois government and others from the federal government. Some solar incentives you might qualify for are:
- Solar Renewable Energy Certificate (SREC): SRECs and other similar performance-based incentives are usually handled by your state government. Once your solar panel system meets a certain threshold (generally a small amount of energy production), you are eligible to receive SRECs that can then be sold to your utility company or other buyers. The money you make is usually considered part of your taxable income.
- Tax Credits: Tax credits are dollar-for-dollar reductions in the amount of income tax that you owe the federal government. (This is different from a tax deduction.)
- Rebates: Solar rebates may be provided by your county or state, or by your local utility company. These rebates are essentially cash back that is applied after you pay for solar panels and before tax credits are calculated.
- Net Metering: You can sign a net metering agreement with your Charleston utility company, that may apply to all or a percentage of the excess electricity your solar panels generate. They will then deduct this value from your monthly utility bill.
- Tax Exemptions: These could come in the form of property tax exemptions, which can let you ignore the value of your solar system when paying property tax on your house. You could also look for exemptions on sales tax at the time of purchase.
Best Solar Financing
Blue Raven Solar
- Industry-leading in-house financing
- Competitive pricing
- Excellent reputation
- Doesn't offer solar batteries
Best for Leasing
Sunrun
- Expansive service area
- Many financing options
- Some reported issues with customer service
- Some reported issues with door-to-door sales
Federal Solar Incentives
Federal solar incentives are likely to be the first thing that you think of when you think about solar incentives. The Federal Solar Investment Tax Credit, or ITC, is probably the most commonly known federal solar incentive. The ITC offers a tax credit for a specific percentage of your solar system's cost.
The ITC applies to the value of solar panels installed on your primary or secondary residence in the United States. The solar system must have been installed on a property you own after January 1, 2006, for you to claim the credit. The ITC initially covered 30% of all costs (panels, accessories, equipment and labor), although the amount has fluctuated over the last few years between 26-30%. The amount you qualify for will depend on when your solar system was installed. There is no cap on the amount you can claim.
To better understand exactly how much money the ITC could save you, contact your local Charleston solar panel installation expert.
In August 2022, the Inflation Reduction Act laid out new provisions for the ITC, now dubbed the Clean Energy Credit. With the new provisions, solar installation projects begun after January 1, 2022, and finished by December 31, 2032, may be eligible for a 30% tax credit. This credit amount will then decrease slightly each year until the current Clean Energy Credit expires in 2035. The expansion to the program also makes credits for energy storage systems even easier to claim, beginning in 2023.
More information about the new Inflation Reduction Act can be found here. To best understand how the new Clean Energy Credit will apply to you, get in touch with your local Charleston solar installers.
State & Local Solar Incentives
Some solar incentives may be offered at the local or state level. Like with federal incentives, these may include rebates, tax credits and more. These incentives — which might be provided by your county or municipality, or by the state of Illinois — could be offered for only a limited time, or on an ongoing basis.
Next Steps for Installing Solar in Charleston
Solar energy use nationwide has significantly increased in the last 15 years, in part due to the growth in the number of solar incentives. You can obtain these incentives from the federal government, the Illinois government or your local utility company. If you're ready to switch over to solar energy, reaching out to your local Charleston solar panel installation expert is an excellent place to start.
EcoWatch's Charleston, IL Solar Incentives FAQs
My home already has solar panels. Do I qualify for any incentives?
An excellent idea would be to talk to a representative from the company that installed your solar system – or reach out to a local Charleston solar installer — to better understand which incentives you may qualify for. If your solar panels were installed after January 1, 2022, you likely qualify for the recently increased 30% tax credit under the Inflation Reduction Act. Systems installed between 2006 and 2021 may qualify for a tax credit of 26-30%.
How much will solar panels save me annually on my electric bill in Charleston?
Once you add solar panels to your home in Charleston, you can expect to save about $824.31 per year, or about $15,661.82 over 20 years.
Who installs solar panels near me?
To find the best solar panel installer in your area, check out our guide to the top solar companies in Charleston.
Can I use a combination of solar and another type of renewable energy to power my home?
Yes, you can use multiple types of renewable energy to power your home — for example, a combination of geothermal and solar. You can also use both renewable energy sources and a backup source of non-renewable energy. Be sure to discuss the details of your plan with your local Charleston solar panel installer, to make sure you know what you'll need and what incentives you may or may not qualify for.
Our goal is to reach as many people as we can with sensible solutions like solar energy. Our team of full-time local researchers collects solar price and installation data for every city in America then compiles it to create these digestible city guides. If you want to read our solar expert's opinion on the top solar companies featured here, follow this link.
Solar incentive research was conducted by Melissa Smith and Karsten Neumeister. Local data analysis was conducted by James Savino. See something we missed or could do better? Email the editor.