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With residential photo voltaic incentives eroding throughout the nation, New York Metropolis is among the few locations within the US getting extra solar-friendly in 2024 due to new zoning laws and an enormous improve to the town’s photo voltaic property tax abatement.
We get it – tax abatements and zoning laws aren’t the sexiest subjects on the earth. However for NYC owners, they supply hundreds of {dollars} in further photo voltaic incentives and open up solid quantities of actual property for putting in panels.
So, we checked in with T.R. Ludwig, CEO and Founding father of Brooklyn SolarWorks and Brooklyn Photo voltaic Cover Co., to see what’s new in New York Metropolis and what else is on the horizon.
What’s new with the NYC Photo voltaic Property Tax Abatement?
Starting in 2024, the NYC Photo voltaic Property Tax Abatement (PTA) might be value 30% of the put in value of a residential photo voltaic and/or battery system, together with photo voltaic carports. Beforehand, the abatement was value 20% and didn’t apply to battery storage or carports. The PTA was additionally prolonged by way of 2035, offering property house owners and the photo voltaic trade a way of stability for this distinctive incentive.
Not like a property tax exemption, which reduces a property’s assessed worth, the abatement works as a credit score towards the photo voltaic proprietor’s property taxes. For a $25,000 photo voltaic system, the 30% abatement is value $1,875 per 12 months for 4 years, for a complete incentive of $7,500.
For reference, at 20% the abatement could be value a complete of $5,000 for a $25,000 system.
20% abatement (put in earlier than 2024)
30% abatement (put in 2024-2035)
System value
$25,000
$25,000
Yr 1 credit score
$1,250
$1,875
Yr 2 credit score
$1,250
$1,875
Yr 3 credit score
$1,250
$1,875
Yr 4 credit score
$1,250
$1,875
Complete property tax abatement
$5,000
$7,500
The PTA can be mixed with different state and native incentives in New York to considerably scale back the price of putting in photo voltaic and battery techniques (as we’ll discover under).
Whereas the abatement solely applies to the 5 boroughs of New York Metropolis, extending and upgrading the PTA required approval from each metropolis and state authorities our bodies, together with a signature from Governor Kathy Hochul. As Treasurer of NYSEIA, Ludwig helped lead a ground-up effort to extend the PTA’s advantages and is already seeing optimistic impacts.
“This was no small feat – the ten% enhance is large and we created the identical 10-year time period because the federal photo voltaic tax credit score,” Ludwig mentioned. “It’s created plenty of curiosity and fervor available in the market, and we’re already seeing different corporations transferring into New York Metropolis in a significant manner.”
What do New York Metropolis’s up to date zoning laws imply for residential photo voltaic?
In December 2023, New York Metropolis handed the “Metropolis of Sure” zoning initiatives, together with an modification that relaxes zoning restrictions for residential photo voltaic installations and opens up huge quantities of actual property for residential installations.
“The primary distinction for rooftop photo voltaic is there have been plenty of ‘no-go’ zones on a roof – most solely flat roofs – the place you couldn’t put panels or have them seen from the road,” Ludwig mentioned. “That restricted photo voltaic system sizes fairly a bit.”
The brand new zoning laws abolish these restrictive setbacks and in addition permit photo voltaic panels for use as accent constructions (aka canopies) over flat roofs, driveways, and backyards. By elevating photo voltaic panels above obstructions and fireplace entry, canopies permit owners to entry extra roof house and construct bigger techniques. Canopies additionally open up alternatives on the bottom, resembling NYC’s 8,500 acres of parking tons.
“About half of Queens couldn’t do canopies due to zoning legal guidelines, now they will. Similar with Brooklyn,” Ludwig mentioned.
For property house owners, extra space for panels means larger alternatives for vitality value financial savings in an period of quickly rising utility charges and electrical energy demand from electrical automobiles and warmth pumps.
“It basically allows extra electrification,” Ludwig mentioned. “Even when somebody already has panels on their roof, in the event that they get an EV or warmth pump and their load goes up, they will squeeze in additional panels as a carport – actually park your EV underneath the panels that cost it.”
A photo voltaic cover put in in Park Slope by Brooklyn Photo voltaic Cover Co. raises the panels above obstructions and fireplace lanes.
Is photo voltaic value it in New York Metropolis?
Because of excessive electrical energy costs and strong incentives on the federal, state, and native ranges, New Yorkers can drastically scale back their electrical energy prices with photo voltaic panels. Along with the brand new insurance policies from NYC, residential photo voltaic techniques might also qualify for:
A 30% tax credit score from the federal authorities
A 25% tax credit score (as much as $5,000) from the state authorities
A 20 cents per Watt upfront rebate by way of NYSERDA
State gross sales tax exemption
1:1 internet metering
Right here’s how these incentives add up for a 5 kW photo voltaic system with a sticker worth of $25,000.
Merchandise
Quantity
Sticker worth
$25,000
NYSERDA rebate
-$1,000
Contract worth
$24,000
30% federal tax credit score
-$7,200
25% state tax credit score
-$5,000 (max)
NYC tax abatement (over 4 years)
-$7,200
Internet worth
$4,600
Altogether, the photo voltaic incentives accessible in NYC scale back the price of this method by practically 82% and the state’s 1:1 internet metering coverage offers full retail worth for the surplus photo voltaic manufacturing pushed onto the grid. Because of internet metering, New Yorkers can successfully swap their ConEd electrical energy invoice for low, regular funds on a closely discounted photo voltaic system.
And that’s to not point out that electrical energy generated by residential photo voltaic is 12-20 instances cleaner than kilowatts coming from the grid.
So, is photo voltaic value it in NYC? Provided that you want clear electrical energy and low, regular vitality prices.
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