I don’t know about you, but I’ve been thinking about installing solar panels for a while now. Solar systems are becoming much more efficient, and it feels that the time is right to kit out my home with a renewable energy source that will save me money and help the environment.
I’d heard that there are ways to get government subsidies and maybe even get solar panels for free. When you look into the detail, As you can probably imagine, the story is a little more complicated. But there are some excellent incentives from the government to help you get started with a solar system.
I’ve done a ton of research that I want to share with you about how to get free solar panels from the government.
What Kinds of Incentives are Available?
The first point to note is perhaps an obvious one, but it’s worth saying. Nobody is just going to come to your house and install a solar system for free.
While there are lots of ways you can get financial help with the purchase of your solar system, it will take some careful planning, and you need to be aware of what is available to you before you get started with looking at designs. Let’s go through all of the different options that might be available to you. You
What Kinds of Federal Solar Incentives are Available?
The Residential Renewable Energy Tax Credit is a federal allowance that is available to all US homeowners. You can claim this tax credit when you buy a solar energy system. The allowance lets you credit up to 22% of your spending on the purchase and related installation costs of your solar system (systems placed in service by 01/01/2022).
The residential renewable energy tax credit is a great way to offset some of your solar panel system costs against your earnings. If you don’t have enough earnings to offset the credit in a given year, you can also carry it forward.
Another good thing about this renewable energy tax credit is that you can apply the 22% discount to the cost of your solar system after taking any state-level rebates or incentives. What this means is that you have the opportunity to benefit from both federal and state incentives to help you with the cost of your solar system.
This tax credit is currently available until December 31, 2021. You should remember this expiry date when you plan the best time to invest in a solar system.
What Kinds of State And Local Incentives Can You Receive?
Most US states offer some kind of incentive scheme that helps you save money on your solar system. Here’s a summary of some of the different inducements you can benefit from.
State Incentives
At the state level, the incentives on offer are usually in the form of tax credits that work in a similar way to the federal renewable energy tax credit.
Remember that you can take the federal and state tax incentives together and roll them over if there is a surplus.
Local Incentives
Also, some cities, counties, and utilities offer direct rebates to help with the purchase cost of solar panel systems. These are becoming less common since solar systems are becoming cheaper and cheaper to buy. Below, I’ll show you how to find out if any are available in your area.
Loans
Loans are another incentive some states and utilities use to help you to buy a solar system. Often these loans are offered at favorable interest rates and they can be a great way to start benefiting from solar power without making that big initial investment. Here’s an example of A solar system loan available in Colorado.
Sale of Electricity Through Net Metering
If you plan to connect your solar system to the local utility grid, you can sell them electricity that you don’t use through the net metering system. One form of solar energy production incentive is for utilities to buy your surplus solar-generated electricity at high rates.
Net metering is an effective system that allows the most efficient use of electricity in a given area. When you connect to the network, there will be times when you’re not using much power that you can watch your meter running backward. Just imagine how satisfying that is!
Admittedly, this kind of subsidy doesn’t lower the purchase cost of your solar system, but it reduces your electrical costs still further and speeds up the time it takes to pay off the purchase of your solar system.
Solar Renewable Energy Credits (SRECs)
Some states have a particularly strong focus on renewable energy, and their local utilities are obliged to meet quotas regarding the amount of energy that they produce from solar and other renewable sources.
This requirement has given rise to the solar renewable energy credit or (SREC). Households with solar systems capable of producing more than 1 MWh of electricity can claim SRECs. You can sell (SRECs) in addition to selling them your electricity. It’s a kind of extra reward for going with solar power.
Performance-Based Incentives (PBI’s)
Another way to make the operation of your solar system more economical is to take advantage of performance-based incentives (PBI’s). These are a reward for producing a certain amount of energy through a solar system.
Your utility will agree to pay you for producing a set quantity of energy from their solar system, whether you use it in your own home or send it back to the grid. In this scheme, utilities are effectively paying you to use your own electricity.
What Kinds Of Incentives Are Available In My State?
The good news is that every state in the US offers some kind of incentive scheme that helps you save money on your solar system. The bad news is that it is complicated, and incentives differ from state to state.
Fortunately, there is an excellent resource that lets you find out what deals are on offer where you live quickly and easily. The DSIREUSA website is operated by N.C. Clean Energy Technology Centre at North Carolina State University.
This website has a very user-friendly setup to help you figure out what incentives are available to you. You can click on a map of your state to find out all of the incentives offered there.
Even better, you can enter your ZIP Code and see what’s available in your neighborhood.
You can be confident that the DSIREUSA offers good information since they receive funding from the US Department of energy. The website gives a brief summary of each of the incentive programs and then directs you to somewhere where you can find out about it in more detail.
It’s Not All About The Purchase Cost
Now that we’ve taken a look at all the different ways to enjoy financial incentives for purchasing a solar system, you’ll see that the situation isn’t just about how to get free solar panels from the government.
What’s most important is to make sure you know about all of the different incentives that are available to you. These may be tax rebates, loans, grants, or bonuses for selling back the electricity they produce.
You also need to consider the money you’ll save from generating your electricity through a solar system.
The next thing to do is shop around and decide on what solar system would best suit you. Then you can use the cost of that system as a starting point.
Next, apply all of the incentives that are available to you in your area. You should be able to figure out how much money you’ll need to put down on your system and then how much you will save per year in electricity costs and ongoing incentives.
Going through the steps will let you work out how long it will take you to pay off the cost of your solar system through reduced energy bills. You can expect a pleasant surprise when you look at the price of a good solar system after incentives and how quickly you will have paid everything off through savings.
Related article:How Long Does It Take for Solar Panels to Pay for Themselves?
What To Do Next
So, while the government won’t actually buy your solar system for you, there are some excellent incentives and other benefits that can help you achieve impressive reductions in the cost of your solar system.
And it really isn’t too hard to get detailed information on just what is available to you in your area. Here’s what you do;
- Enter your Zip code at the DSIREUSA website and see what incentives are available to you.
- Follow up and get all the details on the incentives that you find.
- Figure out what budget you have. Make sure to consider your savings in electricity costs and work out when you will pay off your initial investment.
- Only then start looking at solar systems, pick the right one for you (here’s a handy guide), and start enjoying free power!
If you have any thoughts or questions about solar incentive schemes, please share them in the comment.
Is it available in Arkansas and is it free
Hey Steven, I’m in the state of Florida and to answer your question, I believe that you have to put up the money first and then once installed the money will come back to u by rebates,tax credits and selling you unused electricity to you local company that your using so eventually it paid for itself but not from the rip. I myself am trying to find a loop on how to purchase the system with out having to pay out of pocket. I have not found a way yet but I did come up with a idea. I u can find a company that offers 0% financing for 12 months or 24 months with no payments till then this might work since you won’t have to payout till then and gives u some till to build on your incentives. Hope this my help with your quest in getting free installation and purchase of solar panels for you and myself
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I need solar panel I run a small daycare for low income families and the bill are killing us
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I have found a wonderful solar installation company, Ethical Energy in PA. Besides being what their name implies, all solar panels are Made in America & they do offer a loan to pay for panels (with a pretty average credit score) & installation. One the best sales features is that any problem with the panels & they are covered b/c they come with a 40 year warranty! I have been looking into solar for years, but usually I was like you, clicking on the get solar installed for free! Such B.S. however, just like you explained here in your article, there are many incentives via county, state & federal. Also, I had forgotten my salesman Thomas had said about factoring in the rough estimate of how much I’d be saving by not having an electric bill as well. There are some govt grants towards repairing or updating your home. There are hundreds for me to look thru, but some do include solar panels as updates. I have decided to go with them as soon as my loan goes through. FYI in case u know anybody in PA. ☀️
Hi Andrea,
I’m delighted to hear that you’ve made the decision to go solar and are just waiting for your loan to come through. It sounds like you’ve done your homework and chosen a reputable company for your installation. Your comment is an excellent addition to our guide and serves as a real-life example for our readers considering solar power in PA. Thanks again for sharing your experience, and I wish you the best of luck with your new solar energy system! ☀️