Anyone thinking of changing over to solar energy for their homes is seeing the window shut on that opportunity.

The tax credit created as part of the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act “allowed homeowners to upgrade their electric fuse boxes as well as put solar panels on their roof, and it was a sort of uncapped tax credit of up to 30%,” said Quentin Scott, federal policy director at the Chesapeake Climate Action Network.

He said the tax credit will expire Dec. 31.

For homeowners who were on the fence about converting to solar, “that really cut down their initial cost by one third, which was exciting,” Scott said.

But, Scott said, the passage of the legislation dubbed the “One Big Beautiful Bill” by President Donald Trump will phase out the tax credit by the end of the year.

So his advice to homeowners is to make the move — and fast.

“As long as they are able to get a contractor to start the work and complete that work before the end of this calendar year, they are able to file for this tax credit and get those discounts,” he said.

One caveat, Scott said, is that projects “have to be 100% completed and placed in service,” to qualify for the credit.

Scott said one impact of the expiration of incentives like the one for solar installation for homeowners is that “energy costs are going to go up because there’s less diverse energy being added to the grid.”

Another reason that homeowners would want to act quickly is the concern over potential delays in the supply chain, as well as the availability of contractors when it comes to scheduling and completing the work.