If you started researching solar a couple of years ago and are just now getting back to it, the math has changed more than the panels have. The number most people still have in their head, a 30% federal tax credit, no longer applies to a system you buy or finance yourself in 2026.

Short version: The federal 30% residential solar tax credit expired December 31, 2025, and doesn’t apply to systems purchased with cash or a loan in 2026 or later. Florida’s own incentives, a 100% property tax exemption on the added home value, a sales tax exemption on the equipment, and full retail-rate net metering, are unaffected and still active. Whether solar makes sense now depends much more on your specific numbers than it used to, worth running before you sign anything.

What actually happened to the federal credit

For nearly two decades, homeowners who bought a solar system could claim 30% of the cost back as a federal tax credit, no cap, straight off what you owed the IRS. That credit, Section 25D of the tax code, was repealed early by the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, signed July 2025. It didn’t step down gradually the way past changes did, it ended outright for any system placed in service after December 31, 2025. If your system was installed and operating by the end of 2025, you can still claim it on that year’s return. If you’re buying with cash or a loan in 2026, the federal credit is $0.

There’s one real exception worth knowing: if you go the lease or power purchase agreement (PPA) route instead of buying, the financing company that owns the system on your roof is a business, and businesses can still claim a similar 30% credit (Section 48E) through 2027. That savings doesn’t come to you directly, it shows up as a lower lease payment or per-kWh rate, if the provider is actually passing it through. Worth asking any lease or PPA provider directly whether they’re claiming that credit and having them show the number in writing, rather than taking a “still get 30% off” pitch at face value.

What Florida still offers on its own

None of Florida’s own incentives were touched by the federal change, and with the federal credit gone, they matter proportionally more than they used to:

Property tax exemption. Under Florida Statute 193.624, 100% of the value solar adds to your home is excluded from property tax assessment, permanently, through at least 2037. Your home’s market value can go up because of the system without your tax bill following it up.

Sales tax exemption. Solar equipment is exempt from Florida’s 6% state sales tax under Florida Statute 212.08(7)(hh), applied automatically at the point of sale, no application needed.

Net metering. FPL, Duke, and TECO currently credit solar customers at the full retail electricity rate for excess power sent back to the grid. This has been targeted by legislation more than once (a 2022 bill that would have reduced it was vetoed), and proposals keep surfacing, so it’s worth a quick check that it’s still unchanged before you commit, but as of now it remains intact.

Can your HOA say no?

No. This one’s already covered in detail in what Florida HOAs can and can’t control, but the short version: state law specifically protects a homeowner’s right to install solar, an HOA can regulate placement and appearance within reason, but can’t ban it outright.

Permits and hurricane-code engineering

A rooftop system in Florida needs both a building permit and a separate electrical permit, and the building permit is where wind matters. The Florida Building Code requires rooftop solar mounting to be engineered for wind loads under the ASCE 7 standard, meaning your installer’s attachment points, spacing, and hardware have to be calculated for your specific location’s wind speed, not just installed to a generic national default. Miami-Dade and Broward counties, Florida’s High-Velocity Hurricane Zone, layer on stricter product-approval requirements, that doesn’t apply to Central Florida, but the underlying wind-engineering requirement does, statewide. If an installer’s quote doesn’t mention engineered drawings or a permit timeline, ask.

So is it actually worth it in 2026?

This is the part that’s genuinely different from two years ago, and it’s also the part that’s specific to your house, not a percentage that applies to everyone. Your real answer depends on what a system actually costs you, what your current bill looks like, and how long you’re staying in the home, exactly the inputs a sales deck tends to gloss over in favor of a big first-year savings number.

Rather than take a quote’s projected savings at face value, run it through a solar payback calculator using your own system cost and expected monthly savings, it’ll show your actual break-even point and what the system saves over 25 years, not just year one.

Choosing an installer

Getting quotes from more than one installer is worth the time, prices and proposed system sizing vary more than people expect. For a deeper, Central Florida-specific walkthrough, E-Z Solar publishes independent guides on installer red flags, realistic cost ranges, and incentives, unaffiliated with any solar company, aimed specifically at homeowners in this area rather than generic national advice.

Sources:
https://www.potreroenergy.com/learn/federal-solar-tax-credit-2026
https://floridarenewableenergy.com/florida-solar-incentives-rebates-2026/
https://www.floridarenewableenergy.com/florida-net-metering-guide/