2023 Solar Incentives Guide for Seven Corners, VA - Tax Credits & Rebates

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

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

Solar incentives are meant to help mitigate the cost of installing a solar panel system on your home. This category of financial incentives is designed to encourage more homeowners to switch to renewable energy. You might be eligible for different kinds of incentives, such as cash back, discounts or monthly utility bill credits, depending on your situation. Some incentives come from your specific utility company, county or municipality, some from the Virginia government and others from the federal government. You might qualify for any of the following types of solar incentives:

• Solar Renewable Energy Certificate (SREC): In general, solar systems that produce over a threshold (usually small) amount of electricity can qualify for SRECs or other similar performance-based incentives. SRECs and performance-based incentives in general are typically provided at the state level. SRECs can be sold to your utility company or another buyer, and generally the money you make is normally considered part of your taxable income.
• Net Metering: Net metering is an incentive you can get once your solar panels are up and running. If you've signed a net metering agreement with your Seven Corners utility company, the company will subtract the value of the excess energy produced by your solar system from your monthly utility bill. In some areas, this credit is dollar-for-dollar, while in other areas you may make back a percentage of the value.
• Tax Exemptions: Tax exemptions may come in two forms. The first is sales tax exemption, applied at the time you purchase your solar panels. The second is property tax exemption. This allows you to ignore the value added by your solar system when paying property tax on your house.
• Rebates: Solar rebates can be provided by your local utility company, or by your county or state. These rebates work as cash back that is applied after you purchase solar panels and before tax credits are calculated.
• Tax Credits: Tax credits reduce, dollar-for-dollar, the amount of income tax you owe the federal government. These are different from tax deductions.

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Federal Solar Incentives

Federal incentives are the type of incentives that you are most likely to have some familiarity with. The Federal Solar Investment Tax Credit, or ITC, is the most well-known federal solar incentive. The ITC provides you with a tax credit for a set percentage of the cost of your solar system.

The ITC covers 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, accessories, equipment and labor. You can receive this credit for solar panels installed on a primary or secondary residence that you own in the United States. The original amount you could claim was 30% of the total cost, although the amount you can claim may range between 26-30%. There is no maximum claim amount.

Speaking with your local Seven Corners solar panel installation expert is the best way to learn more about how the ITC applies to your situation.

The ITC was both renewed and expanded by the passage of the Inflation Reduction Act in August 2022. It's also now called the Clean Energy Credit. For solar systems installed between January 1, 2022 and December 31, 2032, homeowners may be eligible for a credit for 30% of the total cost. After 2033, the percentage will decrease annually until the Clean Energy Credit expires in 2035. Starting in 2023, the expansion will also make claiming credit for energy storage systems easier than ever before.

Click here to learn more about the new Inflation Reduction Act. To better understand how the new Clean Energy Credit will apply to you, speak with your local Seven Corners solar installers.

State & Local Solar Incentives

There are often state solar incentives available in addition to federal ones. Rebates, tax credits and more can be offered at a more local level. The incentives — which may be handled by your county or municipality, or by the state of Virginia — might be offered on an ongoing basis, or for only a limited time.

Next Steps for Installing Solar in Seven Corners

There are many types of solar incentives: those offered by the federal government, those offered by the Virginia government and those offered by local utility companies, to name a few. Solar energy use has grown enormously in the last 15 years, partially due to these incentives. We recommend talking to your local Seven Corners solar installation expert for more information about these incentives and to be sure that you're getting all of the money you can for your solar panels.