Texas home electrification rebates (2026)

Texas applied for HEAR funding from the DOE and is in the queue. As of mid-2026, the program is not yet open to applicants — DOE approval is expected by late 2026. Until then, Texas homeowners electrifying their homes are working with state and utility incentives, not the federal HEAR layer.

That sounds bad. It isn't entirely. Texas has the largest electricity market in the country, three different grid regions (ERCOT covers most of the state but not all), and a 100% property tax exemption on residential solar systems that quietly saves more than most rebates.

• Residential Solar Property Tax Exemption — 100% of the appraised value increase from a solar installation is exempt from property tax. Over a 20-year system life on a Texas home with typical property tax rates (~2%), this is often a $5,000–$12,000 lifetime benefit. Quietly the most valuable single Texas solar incentive.
• Austin Energy rebates — Austin's municipally-owned utility runs the most generous residential rebate program in Texas, including heat pump, HPWH, and solar rebates of $300–$2,500.
• CPS Energy (San Antonio) rebates — similar magnitude to Austin. Strong on smart thermostats and heat pumps.
• Oncor "Take a Load Off Texas" — energy efficiency program for residential customers in Oncor's North Texas delivery territory. Air sealing, insulation, and duct sealing rebates.
• Retail electric provider promotions — in ERCOT areas (most of Texas), you choose your electricity provider. Some REPs offer free overnight EV charging, no-cost smart thermostats, or below-market plans that effectively subsidize electrification.

Most of Texas is on the ERCOT grid and is "retail choice" — you pick your electricity provider from dozens of options. This is unusual nationally and creates real strategic value for electrified homes:

• Free nights or free weekends plans — providers like Reliant, TXU, and others have run plans where you pay $0/kWh during specified off-peak hours. Pair this with a smart thermostat, an EV, and a heat pump, and you can cut your effective rate by 30–50%.
• EV-specific plans — at least a half-dozen REPs offer plans optimized for EV owners with very cheap overnight charging.
• Solar buyback plans — Texas doesn't have a statewide net metering policy, so what you get for excess solar exports depends entirely on your REP's plan. Some REPs offer 1:1 buyback; others pay 50–70% of retail. Shop your plan after installing solar.

Honest take: Texas is a harder state to make heat pump math work in than most northern states. Reasons:

• Natural gas is cheap and abundant. A new high-efficiency gas furnace operates at half the operating cost of an electric heat pump in winter, even at Texas's modest electric rates.
• Texas already requires central AC in most homes, so the "heat pump replaces AC plus furnace" cost-savings argument is weaker — the AC was going to be there anyway.
• Without HEAR (yet) and without a state heat pump credit, the rebate stack is thin.

Where Texas electrification does pencil clearly: solar (because of the property tax exemption and good sun), weatherization (because Texas homes lose AC efficiency to leaky envelopes faster than almost anywhere), and HPWHs in areas with cheap electricity.