2023 Solar Incentives Guide for Mantua, NJ - Tax Credits & Rebates

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

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

Solar incentives are designed to make renewable energy usage more affordable through financial incentives for those who install solar panels on their homes. Various types of incentives, like discounts, cash back or monthly utility bill credits, may be available to you. Some incentives may be provided via the New Jersey government, by your utility company or by county or municipality, while other incentives are federal. Categories of solar incentives include:

• Tax Credits: Tax credits are dollar-for-dollar reductions in the amount of income tax that you owe the federal government. (A tax credit is different from a tax deduction.)
• Solar Renewable Energy Certificate (SREC): SRECs and similar other performance-based incentives might be available to you if your solar system produces over a specified (generally small) amount of electricity. This category of incentives is typically handled by the state government. You can sell your SRECs to your utility company or other buyers, and the money you receive in return is typically considered part of your taxable income.
• Tax Exemptions: Sales tax exemptions are applied at the time of purchase for your solar system. Property tax exemptions allow you to exclude the added value of your solar system when you calculate the amount of property tax you need to pay on your house.
• Rebates: Solar companies may help you claim a rebate, or partial refund of your purchase, for your solar system. States or counties will also offer limited-time rebates at various times. Any rebates you receive will usually come off the total price before tax credits are calculated.
• Net Metering: Don't forget to speak with your Mantua utility company about signing a net metering agreement. This allows you to get a credit towards your monthly utility bill for the value of excess energy generated by your solar panels. You might receive either a dollar-for-dollar credit or a percentage of the value.

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. This is a tax credit that reduces your taxes by a predetermined percentage of the money you spend on solar panels for your home.

The ITC applies to the value of solar panels installed on your primary or secondary residence in the United States. The solar panels have to have been installed on a property you own after January 1, 2006 for you to claim the credit. Originally, the ITC covered 30% of all installation costs (panels, accessories, labor and equipment), although the amount has fluctuated slightly over the 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 know exactly how much the ITC could save you, contact your local Mantua solar panel installer.

The Inflation Reduction Act, passed in August 2022, added more provisions to the ITC (as well as renaming it to the Clean Energy Credit). The new Clean Energy Credit is valid until 2035. Homeowners can now apply for a 30% credit for solar systems installed between January 1, 2022 and December 31, 2032. The credit will then decrease annually until the date of expiration. The expansion also makes claiming credit for energy storage systems easier than ever before, starting in 2023.

More information about the new Inflation Reduction Act can be found here. Your local Mantua solar panel installer can answer your questions and explain how the new Clean Energy Credit will apply to you.

State & Local Solar Incentives

Some solar incentives are often also provided at the state and local level. Similar to federal incentives, these can include rebates, tax credits and more. These solar incentives — which might be handled by your county or municipality, or by the state of New Jersey — may be offered for only a limited time, or on an ongoing basis.

Next Steps for Installing Solar in Mantua

There are a variety of solar incentives: those given by local utility companies, those given by the New Jersey government and those given by the federal government, to name a few. The use of solar energy has increased tremendously in the last 15 years, thanks to these incentives. We recommend talking to your local Mantua solar installation expert for more information about these incentives and to make sure that you're getting all of the money you can for your solar system.