2025 Solar Incentives Guide for Waynesville, NC - Tax Credits & Rebates

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

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

Solar incentives are designed to mitigate the cost of installing a solar panel system on your home. This category of financial incentives is intended to encourage more Americans to switch to renewable energy. Various kinds of incentives, like cash back, discounts or credit towards your monthly utility bill, may be available to you. Certain incentives may be provided via the North Carolina government, by your utility company or by county or municipality, while other incentives are federal. Some broad categories of solar incentives include:

• Tax Credits: Unlike tax deductions, tax credits are dollar-for-dollar reductions in the amount of income tax that you owe the federal government.
• Solar Renewable Energy Certificate (SREC): SRECs and other performance-based incentives might be available to you if your solar system produces over a specified (typically small) amount of electricity. Performance-based incentives are normally handled at the state level. You can sell SRECs to your utility company or other buyers, and the money you receive in return is normally considered part of your taxable income.
• Net Metering: Don't forget to speak with your Waynesville 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 could receive either a dollar-for-dollar credit or a percentage of the value.
• Rebates: Your solar installer might help you claim a rebate, or partial refund after purchase, for your solar panels. States or counties will also sometimes offer limited-time rebates. Any rebates you receive will usually come off the total price before any tax credits are calculated.
• Tax Exemptions: These might come in the form of property tax exemptions, which would allow you to exclude the value added by your solar panels when calculating the taxes you pay on your house. You may also qualify for an exemption on sales tax at the time of purchase.

Federal Solar Incentives

Federal solar incentives are likely the first thing that comes to mind when thinking about solar incentives. A federal incentive that most people are probably familiar with is the Federal Solar Investment Tax Credit (ITC). The ITC is a tax credit for a specified percentage of the cost of your solar system.

The ITC applies towards solar systems installed after January 1, 2006, and under this program you can deduct from your taxes a percentage of the total cost of solar panels, equipment, accessories and labor. You can receive this credit for solar panels installed on a primary or secondary residence in the United States that you own. Originally, you could claim 30% of the total cost, although certain projects may qualify for only 26%, depending on the details. There is no maximum claim amount.

Your local Waynesville solar panel installation expert can offer more information about the ITC and how it may apply to your situation.

In August 2022, the ITC (now called the Clean Energy Credit) was expanded and extended by the passing of the Inflation Reduction Act. The Clean Energy Credit re-raises the credit up to 30% for solar installations undertaken between January 1, 2022, and December 31, 2032. After this, the percentage will see a slight decrease annually until the end of the program in 2035. The program expansion also makes credits for energy storage systems even easier to claim, beginning in 2023.

Click here to learn more about the new Inflation Reduction Act. Your local Waynesville solar panel installation experts can answer your questions and explain how the new Clean Energy Credit may apply to you.

State & Local Solar Incentives

Some solar incentives may be provided by state and local governments. As with federal incentives, these might include tax credits, rebates and more. Some incentives are ongoing, while others are available for a limited time. Solar incentives may be offered by the North Carolina government, or by your county or municipality.

Next Steps for Installing Solar in Waynesville

The expanding number of available solar incentives has enormously increased the use of solar power nationwide over the last 15 years. You may receive solar incentives from the North Carolina government, the federal government or your local utility company. Your local Waynesville solar panel installation expert can give you more information about which incentives you may qualify for, and get you feeling good about making the change to renewable energy today.