Texas · Tax exemption
TX Renewable Energy Property Tax Exemption
Removes a tax burden residential solar owners in Texas would otherwise carry -- see what it covers, eligibility, and payback impact below.
- Full property tax ex…
- stated benefit
- Residential
- eligible customers
- 11.8 yr
- Texas baseline payback
- 4
- other Texas programs
What it means
In Texas, a 6 kW system already pays back in about 11.8 years on ~$1,398/year of modeled savings, and the TX Renewable Energy Property Tax Exemption stacks on top of that, on top of any federal credit.
- Full property …
- stated benefit
- 11.8 yr
- baseline payback (pre-incentive)
- 5
- Texas programs that stack
- partial
- net-metering policy
Payback and savings are modeled from public NREL/EIA data; the program benefit is summarized from DSIRE and may change.
Program description
Texas exempts 100% of the added value of solar systems from property taxes.
Program at a glance
- Program type
- Tax exemption
- Eligible customers
- Residential
- Stated benefit
- Full property tax exemption
- State electricity rate
- 14¢/kWh
- Texas solar score
- 49/100
How Texas compares to the U.S. average
Why this incentive matters more (or less) here - Texas's solar fundamentals against the national average.
Source: NREL irradiance and U.S. EIA rates; payback modeled by PlainSolarData. Bars are scaled to the larger of the two values per metric.
Solar's trajectory in Texas
The market this incentive operates in: total installed solar capacity in Texas reported to the EIA.
Texas's solar incentive stack
How this tax exemption sits among Texas's 4 tracked programs, by type
- Tax exemption
Tax exemption
1 programs
- Net metering
Net metering
1 programs
- Performance
Performance
1 programs
- Rebate
Rebate
1 programs
What this shows Texas tracks 4 incentive types; 1 are tax exemptions like this one, removing a cost solar owners would otherwise carry, on top of the state's other program types.
How this incentive fits Texas's solar picture
The TX Renewable Energy Property Tax Exemption removes a tax burden solar owners would otherwise carry, one of Texas's DSIRE-tracked solar incentive programs. Eligibility is scoped to residential customers, with a stated benefit of Full property tax exemption. DSIRE lists no scheduled sunset, though enabling legislation and appropriations can still be revised year to year.
That baseline is slower than most states, which raises the stakes for every incentive on the table. Texas averages 5.7 kWh/m²/day of usable sunlight and residential rates of 14¢/kWh, producing an estimated 9,986 kWh/year and $1,398 of annual utility offset on a typical 6 kW system costing $16,500. That baseline already implies a 11.8-year simple payback and a 25-year modeled net of roughly $18,450 before this incentive - every dollar this tax exemption delivers compresses that payback further.
A handful of other levers are worth checking alongside this one. Texas has 5 solar incentive programs indexed in DSIRE, including adjacent options like TX Retail Net Metering (Deregulated Areas), Austin Energy Solar PBI, CPS Energy Solar Rebate (San Antonio). The state's net-metering policy is classified as partial, which governs how excess generation is credited and often decides whether a given program is worth claiming for a specific household.
Your next step
- See Texas's full solar profile, score, irradiance, rates, payback, and every program you can claim. Texas solar data
- Run the savings calculator with your real bill to see how this incentive changes your own payback. ROI calculator
- Read how state and federal solar credits work together. Tax-credit guide
Estimates here are modeled from public data and are not financial advice; confirm program terms and your own eligibility before relying on a dollar figure.
Other Texas incentives
Frequently asked questions
What is the TX Renewable Energy Property Tax Exemption?
How does the TX Renewable Energy Property Tax Exemption work?
Who is eligible for the TX Renewable Energy Property Tax Exemption?
How does this incentive affect solar ROI in Texas?
Are there other solar incentives in Texas?
Incentive data from the DSIRE (Database of State Incentives for Renewables & Efficiency); state solar economics from NREL and the U.S. EIA. See our methodology.