For many residents, business owners, and municipalities throughout Massachusetts, installing a solar electric system is a smart investment that converts clean, free sunlight to electricity, reduces air pollution, reduces or eliminates monthly electricity bills, and contributes to the local economy by creating local jobs and supporting local businesses.
Go to the MassCEC About Solar page to learn the basics of solar electricity, how to find an installer and how solar incentives work, then see if the below programs can help you add solar to your own home.
Available Programs:
Mass Solar Loan
Mass Solar Loan makes it easy for Massachusetts residents to obtain low-interest loans to fund the installation of solar electricity systems for their homes
- A low-interest, fixed-term loan for homeowners and residents
- Additional loan support for income-qualified solar owners
Solarize Massachusetts
Solarize Massachusetts (Solarize Mass) is a community-based education, outreach and group buying program that allows residents to band together to save money on solar electric systems. Since Solarize Mass launched in 2011, the program has resulted in more than 18,000 individuals expressing interest in pursuing solar electricity. Over 3,300 residents and business owners in the 66 communities signed contracts resulting in 22.3 megawatts of contracted capacity. In addition, the number of small-scale solar electricity projects in almost every community doubled as a result of the program.
The Solarize Mass Plus program pairs the Solarize Mass model with an additional technology offering. This program was piloted in 2017 and participating communities opted for solar PV plus solar hot water and solar PV plus air source heat pumps, resulting in contracts for 37 complementary clean technology systems. Eligible technologies range from various Clean Heating and Cooling technologies, to Energy Efficiency or Electric Vehicles.
- Learn about the environmental and economic benefits of solar electricity
- Join with your neighbors and friends to get a lower cost proposal for a solar electric system
- Save up to 20 percent on the statewide average for solar electricity
Solar Access – Affordable Home Heating
Solar Access is a program designed to help middle-income homeowners access affordable renewable energy. The non-profit Center for EcoTechnology guides homeowners through the installation of solar panels by SunBug Solar and the installation of heat pumps by Girard Heating and Air Conditioning with financing provided by UMass Five College Credit Union.
- Solar panel ownership
- An energy efficient heating and cooling system
- An energy expert to guide you through the program