North Carolina launched the Energy Saver NC early in 2025, providing the opportunity for thousands of households across the state to keep money in their pocket while making home improvements that save energy and improve home comfort. We wrote about this program in a previous article, published a few months ago, and this article will provide more details for North Carolina residents who are interested in learning more. The program has become available in different regions of the state in phases, and it should be available in every single county by January 2026. While the federal tax credits for home energy efficiency will no longer be available in 2026, these state rebate programs will continue to serve North Carolinians across the state.
What Do The Rebates Cover, and How Much Do They Cover?
The rebates are divided into two distinct programs:
- Home Electrification and Appliance Rebates (HEAR) Program
The Home Electrification and Appliance Rebates (HEAR) program is designed to encourage people to switch to more efficient electric appliances; therefore, the rebates cannot generally be used for replacing one electric appliance with another of the same type. In general, they must be either for first-time electrification, replacing non-electric appliances, installed in new construction, or replacing less efficient electric resistance heating appliances with more efficient heat pump units.
It covers the following home upgrades up to the indicated dollar amounts. The total amount a household can receive through this program cannot exceed $14,000. The program is exclusively for low- and middle-income households (and property owners renting to low- and middle-income households), with low-income households getting up to 100% of the project cost covered and middle-income households getting up to 50% of the project cost covered.
- Heat pump water heater: up to $1,750 rebate
- Heat pump for heating/cooling: up to $8,000 rebate
- Electric stove/cooktop/range/oven: up to $840 rebate
- Heat pump dryer: up to $840 rebate
- Electrical panel: up to $4,000 rebate
- Insulation, air sealing, and ventilation: up to $1,600 rebate
- Electrical wiring: up to $2,500 rebate
- Homeowners Managing Efficiency Savings (HOMES) Program
The Homeowners Managing Efficiency Savings (HOMES) program gives rebates for any work that reduces energy use in the home, so long as the work is estimated to reduce total household energy use by at least 20%. It could be sealing air leaks around windows or doors, fixing leaky air ducts, adding insulation, replacing HVAC or hot water heaters, or any combination of things like this. Participation in this program requires residents to work with an approved contractor who will use specialized diagnostic tests and software to figure out which measures will reduce the most energy use and save the most money.
The efficiency rebate program covers 100% of the project cost up to $16,000 per household for low-income households and 50% of project costs up to $4,000 for middle-income households.
Who Is Qualified To Receive Rebates?
Income: The rebate programs are open to low- and middle-income households, with low-income households (making less than 80% of the local county’s median income) having larger rebate amounts. You can check how your household income compares to the area median income here.
The Electrification and Appliance program rebates are reserved for only low- and middle-income households, with low-income households eligible for larger rebates than middle-income households. For this program, low-income is defined as making less than 80% of the median income for the local area of the project and middle-income is defined as making between 80% and 150% of the area median income. You can check how your household income compares to the area median income here.
More information about income qualifications is available here.
Homeowners and Renters: The rebate programs are generally suited for homeowners, but renters can participate with paperwork from the building owner.
Landlords/Property Owners: Property owners can participate in the rebate programs to improve their buildings on behalf of low- and middle-income renters.
Multifamily Buildings: The multifamily rebate program is scheduled to launch in 2026. The program managers encourage tenants and owners of multifamily buildings to go ahead and start the application process, and the Energy Saver NC team will reply as the multifamily program advances.
Property owners are an important group of people in the program and hold the possibility of positively impacting many families’ lives by utilizing this program for upgrading housing and lowering tenants’ energy bills. If you are a property owner, please consider participating, and if you know a property owner, please send this article to them.
Do Rebate Recipients Have To Pay Rebate Money Out Of Pocket And Then Get Reimbursed?
Nope! The rebate programs are designed to be handled by pre-approved contractors who will knock the value of the rebate off of the bill for the project. In instances where low-income households are eligible for getting 100% of the cost covered, this could mean $0 of total cost and no money out of pocket for major home upgrades!
Can You Use the State Home Energy Rebate Programs and a Utility Rebate Together?
Yes! Some utility providers may have rebates available, which can be applied to any remaining costs after the state rebate is applied. Make sure to check with your electric and gas providers to see about available energy efficiency rebates!
How To Claim A Rebate
The first step to claiming a rebate is to confirm your income qualification by filling out the form here or calling 866-998-8555.
Rebates are accessed by working through a pre-approved contractor that is participating in the program, who will discount the value of the rebate from your bill. There are now several dozen contractors participating in the program across the state. After having your income qualification confirmed, you will select a contractor to work with for your project.
If you are a contractor who would like to sign up to participate and get business directed to you from the program, you can sign up here. Likewise, if you know a contractor who you think should be aware of this program so they can participate, please send them this article!
Where Does The Funding Come From?
North Carolina’s Home Energy Rebate Programs funding comes from the U.S.Department of Energy, which was tasked with administering rebate programs in each state in a historic investment program signed into law as part of the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022. Americans need more bold investments into lowering our energy bills through energy efficiency and clean energy, as the Inflation Reduction Act does.
