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Solar City open
Administered by Halifax Regional Municipality.
Halifax's financing for solar panels: the municipality pays your installer and you repay the cost over 10 years at a fixed 4.75%, as a charge on the property rather than a personal loan. With Nova Scotia's SolarHomes rebate closed to homeowners, it is the public money left for solar in Halifax, and it is a loan, not a rebate.
source · verified 27 September 2026
What it pays
- Interest rate
- 4.75%, fixed, calculated daily on the balance
- Term
- 10 years, one instalment a year
- How you repay
- A voluntary Local Improvement Charge on the property, billed separately from the property tax bill and collected with the same penalties and lien priority as taxes; the first payment is due six weeks after the invoice
- Who can use it
- Residential property owners, and also non-profits, places of worship, co-operatives and charities
- Maximum
- Not published
- Paying early
- Allowed at any time, without penalty
- If you sell
- Pay off the balance at the sale, or pass the charge to the buyer if both of you agree
| Instalment | Principal | Interest | Payment |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | $1,500.00 | $0.00 | $1,500.00 |
| 2nd | $1,500.00 | $641.25 | $2,141.25 |
| 5th | $1,500.00 | $427.50 | $1,927.50 |
| 10th | $1,500.00 | $71.25 | $1,571.25 |
| Total | $15,000.00 | $3,206.25 | $18,206.25 |
Who is eligible
What you need
- Property in the Halifax Regional Municipality, with all taxes and separately billed charges paid
- Any municipal lien on the property paid off or being paid on schedule
- A contractor with liability insurance, in good standing with the Workers Compensation Board, who pulls the building and electrical permits and supplies equipment certified for Nova Scotia
- A solar assessment from your contractor that meets Solar City's criteria
What disqualifies you
The rules people find out about after the work is done.
- Parts of a system that would produce less than 70% of what an ideal system would on the same site; north-facing or heavily shaded panels may be refused.
- Taxes or municipal charges in arrears.
Where the application goes
Register online, then email your contractor choice to the Solar City office; the municipality pays the contractor after the final inspection.
| If this is you | Apply here |
|---|---|
| Register | halifax.ca |
| Contractor selection and questions | [email protected] |
The thing most pages get wrong
Older pages still send Nova Scotia homeowners to SolarHomes, which closed to homeowners in April 2025; the District of Lunenburg's financing page still promises SolarHomes rebates. In Halifax what remains is this financing, not a rebate: you pay the full cost of the system, spread over ten years with interest.
The 70% rule
Solar City finances only the parts of a system, roof face by roof face, that would generate at least 70% of what an optimal system would at the same site. Ask the Solar City administrator before designing the system if part of your roof faces north or is shaded.