2025 Solar Incentives Guide for Grafton, MA - Tax Credits & Rebates

What Solar Tax Credits, Incentives, and Rebates are Available in Grafton?

Source: https://www.dsireusa.org/

The phrase "solar incentives" includes a wide range of financial incentives designed to make installing and using solar panels more affordable. This is done to encourage people to switch to renewable energy. Various types of incentives, like discounts, cash back or credit towards your monthly utility bill, might be available to you. Some incentives may be offered by the Massachusetts government, by your utility company or by county or municipality, while others are federal. Types of solar incentives might include:

• Tax Credits: Different from tax deductions, tax credits reduce, dollar-for-dollar, the amount of income tax that you owe the government.
• Solar Renewable Energy Certificate (SREC): Generally, solar systems that produce more than a predetermined (generally small) amount of electricity can qualify for SRECs or other performance-based incentives. SRECs and the like are typically offered by your state government. When you receive an SREC, you can sell it to your utility company or another buyer, and the money you receive is normally considered part of your taxable income.
• Net Metering: Make sure you speak with your Grafton utility company about signing a net metering contract. This allows you to get a credit towards your utility bill every month for the value of excess energy generated by your solar panels. You may receive either a dollar-for-dollar credit or a percentage of the value.
• Tax Exemptions: Tax exemptions may come in one of two forms. First, there is sales tax exemption, which is applied when you purchase solar panels. The second is property tax exemption. This allows you to exclude the added value of your solar system when paying property tax on your house.
• Rebates: Rebates, or partial refunds after a purchase, are normally given prior to any solar tax credits being calculated. Solar rebates can be offered by your local utility company, by your county or by your state.

Federal Solar Incentives

Federal incentives are the kind of incentives that you are most likely to have some knowledge of. You've likely heard of the Federal Solar Investment Tax Credit, or ITC. The ITC is a tax credit that reduces your taxes by a certain percentage of the money you spend on your solar system.

The ITC applies to the total cost of installing a solar system, including the panels themselves as well as labor, accessories and equipment. You can claim this credit for panels installed after January 1, 2006, on a primary or secondary residence that you own, as long as it is located in the United States. From its original value of 30% of the total cost, the credit has fluctuated slightly between 26-30%, and you may qualify for varying percentages depending on when your project was completed. There is no maximum amount you can claim.

To know exactly how much the ITC could save you, contact your local Grafton solar panel installer.

The Inflation Reduction Act, passed in August 2022, expanded and extended the ITC (as well as renaming it to the Clean Energy Credit). For solar system installations that begin after January 1, 2022, and are completed by the end of 2032, homeowners can receive a credit equal to 30% of the total cost. After 2033, the percentage will decrease annually until the Clean Energy Credit ends in 2035. The program expansion also makes claiming credit for energy storage systems easier than ever before, starting in 2023.

Click here to learn more about the new Inflation Reduction Act. Your local Grafton solar panel company is the best resource for answering your questions about the new Clean Energy Credit and how it applies to you.

State & Local Solar Incentives

There are more than just federal solar incentives; rebates, tax credits and more might also be offered at the state and local level. Certain incentives are offered for only a limited time, while others are ongoing. Your local incentives may come from your county or municipality, or from the Massachusetts government.

Next Steps for Installing Solar in Grafton

Nationwide solar energy use has gone up significantly in the past 15 years, in part thanks to the proliferation of solar incentives. You can obtain these incentives from your local utility company, the Massachusetts government or the federal government. If you're prepared to make the change to solar energy, talking to your local Grafton solar panel installation expert is an excellent place to start.