Thanks to Maryland’s generous solar rebates and EnergySage’s Solar Marketplace, installing some panels on your roof is easier than picking a couple of the state’s famous blue crabs. Learn why the plummeting cost of solar compliments the plethora of solar energy incentives in the beautiful state of Maryland.
The best way to compare your solar options and save money at the same time is by registering on the EnergySage Marketplace. When you compare quotes for solar panels on EnergySage's competitive solar marketplace, you can expect to see prices up to 20% lower than working with a single solar company. Read our updated article on the cost of solar panels to compare solar costs across states and by panel brand.
What are the top solar rebates and incentive programs in Maryland?
On top of the federal government’s flagship solar Investment Tax Credit (ITC), which effectively reduces the cost of your solar energy system by 26 percent, MD has a couple of great solar policies that decrease the up-front cost of solar and increase the amount of money your system will generate:
Residential clean energy grant program
This MD solar rebate program is beautiful in its simplicity: If you install a solar energy system, Maryland will pay you $1,000. As easy as that. Just make sure your system is smaller than 20 kilowatts (kW), is located at your primary residence, and that your installer has the standard NABCEP certification.
Solar Renewable Energy Certificates (SREC)
Maryland has set a renewable portfolio standard goal to produce 2.5 percent of its electricity from solar resources in 2020, and you can get paid to help. Under this program, you are granted one Maryland SREC for each megawatt-hour (MWh) of clean electricity your panels produce, which you can then sell in the SREC market.
Maryland net metering
Thanks to net metering policies in Maryland, you will receive full credit on your utility electric bills for the extra electricity that your solar panels generate. During the times that you make more power than you use, you can “bank” it with your utility and draw from it later when you need more than your panels are generating. Pepco (Potomac Electric Power Company) offers the top utility net metering program in Maryland.
Save on your taxes with solar power in Maryland
Maryland solar power tax benefits
As if the grant and credits above were not enough, Maryland also gives you a few tax breaks so you do not have to worry about your tax bills going up as a result of going solar. Thanks to the Property Tax Exemption for Solar and Wind Energy Systems, you will not have to pay any extra taxes on the increased value of your home when you go solar in Maryland. The Sales and Use Tax Exemption for Renewable Energy Equipment makes your purchase of your new solar energy system tax-free.
The federal solar tax credit
Don’t forget about federal solar incentives! With the investment tax credit (ITC), now referred to as the Residential Clean Energy Credit for residential systems, you can reduce the cost of your PV solar energy system by 30 percent. Keep in mind that the ITC applies only to those who buy their PV system outright (either with a cash purchase or a solar loan), and that you must have enough income for the tax credit to be meaningful (unless you’re a tax-exempt entity, in which case you might be eligible for a direct payment).
