Greenville, NC Solar Panels

North Carolina’s Solar Energy System Property Tax Exclusion helps homeowners save money on their annual property taxes when they install a solar energy system. When you add solar panels to your home, they typically increase your property’s value. Normally, this would mean higher property taxes. However, this state program excludes 80% of your solar system’s appraised value from property taxation, significantly reducing the tax impact of your investment.

To qualify for this exclusion, your solar system must be classified as business personal property. This means you need to either claim depreciation on the system on your federal tax return (Schedule C) or recognize income from selling electricity back to your utility company. If you participate in a simple net metering arrangement where you only receive credits on your utility bill—without claiming depreciation or reporting income—your system is considered non-business personal property and is already fully exempt from property taxes under a different provision.

There are no application deadlines for this ongoing program, as it applies automatically once your county assessor determines your system’s classification. You may need to provide documentation to your county tax assessor, such as utility company agreements, purchase receipts, or relevant tax return information, to help them determine whether your system qualifies for the 80% exclusion or the full exemption. The key consideration is understanding how you’re using your solar system and working with your county to ensure it’s properly classified for tax purposes.

Solar for All (EnergizeNC) is a $156 million state program designed to help North Carolina households—especially those with low to moderate incomes—access affordable rooftop solar energy. Led by the NC Department of Environmental Quality’s State Energy Office in partnership with clean energy organizations, this EPA-funded initiative focuses on deploying solar panels and battery storage on homes in low-income and disadvantaged communities across the state, including tribal lands. The program aims to reduce energy costs for families while cutting greenhouse gas emissions and creating a cleaner energy future.

While specific dollar amounts for individual households haven’t been announced yet, the program is designed to make solar accessible to families for whom energy costs represent a significant portion of their household budget. The initiative combines solar installation with existing energy efficiency programs to maximize long-term savings. Priority goes to low-income and disadvantaged communities, though the coalition plans to expand accessible home energy financing options for households statewide. The program launched in 2024 and will work with community stakeholders to ensure benefits reach those who need them most.

Homeowners interested in this program should visit www.energizeNC.org to sign up for updates as implementation details are finalized. The coalition is working to overcome traditional barriers to solar adoption and develop innovative approaches within North Carolina’s current regulatory framework. The program also emphasizes workforce development and quality installation standards to ensure systems are safe, reliable, and deliver the promised financial and environmental benefits to participating communities.

The Duke Energy PowerPair program is a pilot incentive that helps North Carolina homeowners reduce the upfront cost of installing solar panels paired with battery storage. Duke Energy offers a one-time payment of up to $9,000 when you install both solar and a battery system together. The exact incentive amount depends on the type of solar array and battery you choose to install.

To participate, you must be a Duke Energy Carolinas or Duke Energy Progress customer in North Carolina and work with a Duke Energy-approved Trade Ally installer. You’ll need to apply during a four-week application window that opens May 10th, and participants are selected through a random selection process to ensure fair access. You can choose between two enrollment options: the Residential Solar Choice rider (RSC) or the Net Metering Bridge rider (NMB). If you select the NMB option, you’re required to enroll in Duke Energy’s battery control program, which allows the utility to access your stored energy up to 36 times per year during peak demand periods. In exchange, you’ll receive monthly bill credits on top of the initial incentive. Not all solar and battery systems qualify for this program, so check Duke Energy’s approved equipment list at duke-energy.com/PowerPair before making your purchase decision.

The Net Metering Bridge Rider (NMB) is a transitional solar compensation program available to Duke Energy Progress and Duke Energy Carolina customers in North Carolina. Starting October 1, 2023, this program replaced the previous 1-to-1 net metering option for new solar customers. Under NMB, your solar system offsets your electricity usage in real-time during the day, and any excess energy you send to the grid is credited to your account at a reduced rate of $0.034 per kilowatt-hour (3.4 cents/kWh). These credits are applied monthly and do not carry forward to future months.

To participate in NMB, you must submit your interconnection application before the program reaches its annual capacity limit. Once enrolled, Duke Energy Progress customers will pay a minimum monthly charge of $28 plus $0.62 per kilowatt of your system’s DC capacity each month. Duke Energy Carolina customers will pay a $22 minimum monthly charge plus $0.28 per kilowatt of DC capacity monthly. It’s important to note that NMB is a temporary bridge program—once annual capacity is reached, new customers will need to enroll in the Residential Solar Choice (RSC) program instead, which requires participation in a Time of Use rate plan with Critical Peak Pricing. If you installed solar before October 1, 2023 under the previous 1-to-1 net metering program, you’re grandfathered in until January 1, 2027.