2024 Solar Incentives Guide for Warminster, PA - Tax Credits & Rebates
In this guide, we'll cover the latest solar incentives and rebates available in Warminster.
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 Warminster?
High Performance Buildings Incentive Program
Commercial loans/loan guarantees: $2 million
Grants: Lesser of 10% of project costs or $500,000
Wind and Geothermal Incentives Program
Manufacturer grants: $5,000 per job created within 3 years
Loans for geothermal systems: $3 per square foot of space served up to $5 million; also limited to 50% of eligible costs for residential systems.
Loans for wind energy production projects: $5 million
Grants for wind energy production projects: $1 million
Grants for feasibility studies: 50% of cost up to $175,000
Loan guarantee grants: Up to 75% of deficient funds up to $5 million
Solar Alternative Energy Credits
High Performance Building Incentives Program
Federal Residential Renewable Energy Tax Credit
Source: https://www.dsireusa.org/
Solar incentives mitigate the cost of installing a solar panel system on your home. These financial incentives are intended to encourage more people to switch their home over to renewable energy. Different types of incentives, including discounts, cash back or monthly utility bill credits, may be available to you. Certain incentives may be provided via the state of Pennsylvania, by your utility company or by county or municipality, while other incentives are federal. Some solar incentives you might qualify for are:
- Net Metering: You may be able to sign a net metering contract with your Warminster utility company that will apply to all or a percentage of the excess electricity your solar panels generate. They will then subtract this value from your monthly utility bill.
- Tax Exemptions: Sales tax exemptions are effective at the time of purchase for your solar panels. Property tax exemptions let you ignore the value added by your solar system when you're calculating how much property tax you need to pay on your house.
- Rebates: Rebates, or partial refunds after a purchase, are typically given before any solar tax credits are calculated. Rebates may be given by your local utility company, by your county or by your state.
- 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 (typically a small amount of energy production), you are eligible to receive SRECs that can 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 (not deductions) in how much income tax you owe the government.
Best National Provider
SunPower
- Most efficient panels on the market
- National coverage
- Cradle to Cradle sustainability certification
- Great warranty coverage
- Expensive
- Customer service varies by local dealer
Best Regional Coverage
Momentum Solar
- Great warranty coverage
- Representatives are experts on local policies
- Concierge service ensures steady communication
- Slightly limited service offerings
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
When someone says "solar incentives," you probably think of federal incentives first. The solar incentive that you may be most familiar with is the Federal Solar Investment Tax Credit (ITC), which gives you a credit on your taxes equal to a predetermined percentage of the cost of your solar system.
The ITC can be applied to solar systems installed after January 1, 2006, and lets you deduct from your taxes a percentage of the total cost of solar panels, accessories, equipment and labor. This credit can be claimed on solar panels installed on a primary or secondary residence in the United States that you own. The original amount you could claim was 30% of the total cost, although depending on when the project was completed, your credit may range from 26-30%. There is no maximum claim amount.
To find out exactly how much the ITC could save you, talk to your local Warminster solar panel installer.
The ITC has been renewed and expanded following the passage of the Inflation Reduction Act in August 2022. It's also now called the Clean Energy Credit. Homeowners can now qualify for a credit of 30% of the total costs of solar system installation for projects started after January 1, 2022, and completed before the end of 2032. The percentage will then decrease on a yearly basis until the Clean Energy Credit ends in 2035. Starting in 2023, the program expansion will also make claiming credit for energy storage systems easier than ever before.
More information about the new Inflation Reduction Act can be found here. Your local Warminster solar panel installation experts can answer any questions you have 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 could include tax credits, rebates and more. Certain incentives are ongoing, while others are only available for a limited time. These incentives might be provided by your county or municipality, or by the Pennsylvania government.
Next Steps for Installing Solar in Warminster
There are many types of solar incentives: those offered by local utility companies, those provided by the Pennsylvania government and those provided by the federal government, to name a few. Solar energy use has grown tremendously in the last 15 years, partially thanks to these incentives. We recommend talking to your local Warminster solar installer for more information about these incentives and to make sure that you're getting the largest number possible for your solar system.
EcoWatch's Warminster, PA Solar Incentives FAQs
What are some environmental benefits of adding solar panels to my home?
You can reduce your carbon footprint by 250 pounds of CO2 annually when you install solar panels. This adds up to roughly 5,000 pounds over 20 years. Solar is also a renewable energy source, meaning that switching your home over lessens the drain on our planet's resources.
When does the federal solar tax credit end?
The federal solar tax credit, formerly known as the ITC and now named the Clean Energy Credit, is slated to end January 1, 2035. The current 30% credit will end in 2032, replaced by a 26% credit in 2033 and a 22% credit in 2034.
If I trade in my appliances for ones that utilize solar energy, are there any incentives that I can claim?
The new Inflation Reduction Act introduces a number of incentives meant to reward homeowners for making eco-friendly upgrades. Some incentives include tax credits and rebates for installing new electric appliances. You can find more details about these incentives here.
What if I want to add a solar system to a rental property, vacation home or commercial property? Can I still qualify for incentives?
While we recommend speaking with your local solar installer and/or tax professional to best understand what solar incentives apply to you, many apply to a second home, so long as that home is in the United States and owned by you. There may be additional incentives available for commercial properties specifically, depending on the specifics.
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.