2025 Solar Incentives Guide for Christiansburg, VA - Tax Credits & Rebates

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

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

Solar incentives are intended to make renewable energy usage more affordable through financial incentives for individuals who install solar panels on their homes. Various types of incentives, including discounts, cash back or credit towards your monthly utility bill, might be available to you. Some incentives may be provided via the Virginia 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. (This is different from a tax deduction.)
• Net Metering: You may be able to sign a net metering contract with your Christiansburg utility company. This agreement may apply to all or a percentage of the excess electricity your solar panels generate. Your utility company will then subtract this value from your monthly utility bill.
• Solar Renewable Energy Certificate (SREC): SRECs and other performance-based incentives may be available to you if your solar system produces over a specified (generally small) amount of electricity. This category of incentives is usually handled at the state level. 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.
• Rebates: A rebate is a partial refund after the purchase of your solar system. Rebates could be offered by your local utility company, your state or your county. The rebates are usually applied before calculating tax credits.
• Tax Exemptions: These might 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 may also qualify for an exemption on sales tax at the time of purchase.

Federal Solar Incentives

When thinking about solar incentives, you probably think of federal incentives first. A federal incentive that most people are likely familiar with is the Federal Solar Investment Tax Credit (ITC). This is a tax credit for a given percentage of the cost of your solar system.

The ITC can be applied to 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. Initially, the ITC applied to 30% of all costs (panels, labor, accessories and equipment), although the amount has fluctuated over time between 26-30%. The installation date of your solar system will determine what percentage you are eligible for. There is no cap on the amount you can claim.

Contacting your local Christiansburg solar panel installation expert is the best way to learn more about how the ITC may apply to your situation.

In August 2022, the ITC (now referred to as the Clean Energy Credit) was expanded and extended by the passage of the Inflation Reduction Act. Homeowners can now receive a credit of 30% of the total solar system installation costs for projects started after January 1, 2022, and completed before the end of 2032. This percentage will then begin to decrease annually until the Clean Energy Credit ends in 2035. The expansion also makes credits for energy storage systems even easier to claim, starting in 2023.

More information about the new Inflation Reduction Act can be found here. The easiest way to fully understand how the new Clean Energy Credit applies to you is to talk with your local Christiansburg solar panel installation expert.

State & Local Solar Incentives

Some solar incentives are often also offered at the local or state level. As with federal incentives, these could include rebates, tax credits and more. The incentives — which might be handled by the state of Virginia, or by your county or municipality — could be offered on an ongoing basis, or for only a limited time.

Next Steps for Installing Solar in Christiansburg

The nationwide use of solar energy has gone up tremendously in the last 15 years, in part due to the proliferation of solar incentives. You can obtain these incentives from your local utility company, the Virginia government or the federal government. Talking to your local Christiansburg solar panel installation expert is the right first step towards getting all the incentives you qualify for when you switch to solar energy.