Federal Tax Credits for Energy Efficiency

Starting January 1, 2009, per the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act, homeowners can benefit from new tax credits for energy efficient home improvements (windows, skylights, doors, roofs, insulation, HVAC, biomass stoves and non-solar water heaters).

There are also tax credits for vehicles (hybrid gas-electric, bio-diesel, diesel, battery-electric, alternative fuel, or fuel cell), solar energy systems,small wind energy systems, and fuel cells.

Home Improvements
Home improvement tax credits are now available for home improvements “placed in service” from January 1, 2009 through December 31, 2009. Any qualified home improvements made in 2008 are not eligible for the tax credit.

Home improvement tax credits are available for insulation, replacement windows, water heaters, certain high efficiency heating and cooling equipment, and biomass stoves. See chart. The maximum amount that a taxpayer may claim from all of these tax credits combined is $500 over the lifetime of the tax credit (2006, 2007 & 2009).

If you are building a new home, you can qualify for the tax credit for photovoltaics, solar water heaters, small wind systems and fuel cells, but not the tax credits for windows, doors, insulation, roofs, HVAC, or non-solar water heaters.

Learn more about the program at Energy Star.

Thirsty for more? Check out these related articles:

1. What is a Zero Energy House?
2. Tax Credits and Incentives for Solar Panels
3. Energy Efficiency with Building Code
4. Federal Goverment Support Grows for Green Building
5. Energy Efficient Mortgages

One Response to “Federal Tax Credits for Energy Efficiency”

1. Tim S says:

   February 23, 2009 at 4:44 pm

   Of course the tax credit is now going to be $1,500 instead of $500 and that is toward a 30%, instead of 10% discount. Here is the problem, and this is a travesty. Replacement windows are a waste of energy and money. The marketing for these is responsible for more waste and debt than should be legally allowed. You can verify this at the very DOE-related sites that are pushing the windows. Go to the Home Energy Saver site and spend 30 minutes plugging in data about your house. If you have a normal window to wall ratio, going from existing windows with storms to Energy Star windows will save you about $50 on your heating bill for the year -based on the simulation program. The windows won’t last, at least at the “super-efficiency” level for more than 20-30 years, if that long. Even the Energy Star site, if you look closely, lets you know that you won’t save much -but they might be giving you best case numbers, I don’t know that.
   Some say windows should be the last thing you do to improve efficiency, but really, if they are pre 1950, maybe even newer, they should just be repaired and they will last “forever”. Dig into this Energy Star program (look at the “partnership” pdf’s) and you will find some very disturbing motivation. Yes, there is some doublespeak about helping people choose the best option when they are in the market -but from the site it’s clear they are creating the market. We cannot waste our way into energy efficiency or economic recovery, there are plenty of legitimate things to do. New houses should have new windows, existing houses should have repaired windows. Does embodied energy account for anything?