Are there rebates or tax credits for spray foam insulation in Houston?

On this page

1. The federal credit, and the date it stopped
2. What the credit covered, and why it was smaller than it sounded
3. CenterPoint's Houston program lists five materials, and foam is not one of them
4. Where the 40% up to $750 number comes from
5. Texas has programs on paper, and none you can claim today
6. Commercial buildings: 179D is a deduction, and its clock already ran out
7. What is actually on the table in October 2026
8. Frequently asked questions
9. What to do next

The federal tax credit for insulation is gone. The IRS page for the Energy Efficient Home Improvement Credit reads that you can claim the credit for improvements made through December 31, 2025, and the IRS FAQ on Public Law 119-21 states that the credit "will not be allowed for any property placed in service after December 31, 2025." If your attic gets sprayed in 2026, there is no federal credit for it.

That is the whole answer for most people who land here, and we would rather say it than let a sales call say it. A Houston attic runs $4,000 to $10,000, which is why the question comes up first. The prices are in the cost post.

We install insulation. We are not tax advisers. Everything here is what the published documents said as of October 2026, each one named so you can check it. Confirm any of it with your own tax preparer before you budget around it.

The federal credit, and the date it stopped

The credit people mean is section 25C, and insulation was one of the things it covered.

Public Law 119-21, signed July 4, 2025 and commonly called the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, moved the end date up from 2033. The IRS calls it "the accelerated termination of the section 25C credit." There is no phase out and no transition rule in it.

The test is the one the IRS uses: placed in service. Not paid, not signed, not ordered. As of October 2026 the IRS page still reads through December 31, 2025, and we have found no 2026 law putting it back.

What the credit covered, and why it was smaller than it sounded

The old number still turns up in sales copy. From IRS Fact Sheet FS-2025-01:

• The amount was "insulation materials or systems and air sealing materials or systems (30% of costs up to $1,200)," claimed on Form 5695.
• Labor did not count. A taxpayer "may not include the labor costs" for insulation materials or systems. On an installed foam price the material is the minority of the number, so 30% up to $1,200 never applied to a whole attic price.
• The IRS never named spray foam. It is not in the fact sheet. Foam qualified only as an insulation material or system, so a contractor who tells you the IRS listed spray foam has not read it.

CenterPoint's Houston program lists five materials, and foam is not one of them

Here is the document that question turns on.

In CenterPoint Energy's 2026 Residential Standard Offer Program manual, dated January 2026, Appendix A lists the Ceiling Insulation measure's qualifying materials in full: Mineral Fiber Blanket, Mineral Fiber Loose Fill, Cellulose, Vermiculite (loose fill), Perlite (loose fill).

Spray polyurethane foam is not on that list. The only place polyurethane appears in the manual is under the separate Air Infiltration measure, as a sealing compound that "Conforms to ASTM C920-98," which is caulk, not ceiling insulation. The 2026 Hard-to-Reach Standard Offer Program manual carries the identical list, and so does the 2025 manual.

CenterPoint writes no sentence saying spray foam does not qualify. What is checkable is that it is not on the list, and that none of the materials on it are products we install.

Four more things in those manuals:

• The money does not go to the homeowner. "CNP pays all incentives directly to Project Sponsors, not to customers. Sponsors are not required to provide any direct incentives to customers."
• Newer homes are excluded from envelope work. The ineligible measures table rules out "Envelope measures on homes that have received the ENERGY STAR label or were built after January 2003," and names ceiling insulation.
• An attic that is already decent is excluded. "Existing insulation levels of R-22 and above are in compliance," and below R-22 must reach R-30. Both sit under the Houston code minimum in what R-value Houston code requires.
• The budget is small. The manual states $300,000 budgeted for the Residential Standard Offer Program for 2026, and the Hard-to-Reach manual states $500,000, for the whole Texas electric territory for a year. Homes also need central electric air conditioning, and Hard-to-Reach is means tested.

Those are the electric programs. If you heat with natural gas, ask CenterPoint about its current Texas offers.

Where the 40% up to $750 number comes from

Search for Houston insulation rebates and you will find pages saying insulation upgrades qualify for 40% of the invoice up to $750. That number is real. It is not Houston's.

It belongs to Indiana. CenterPoint Energy Indiana's 2026 Residential Insulation Rebate Application names Indiana's Residential Insulation Rebate Program, requires a CenterPoint Energy of Indiana account holder, and routes applications to an Indiana address. Its attic line reads that the rebate is 40% of material and labor invoice cost, up to $750, where existing insulation must be R-11 or below and installed insulation R-38 or above. Its insulation type checkboxes include High-density foam and Low-density foam, so in Indiana both closed-cell and open-cell spray foam do qualify.

CenterPoint does run real insulation rebates in other territories, and its Minnesota program even requires spray foam for rim joists. Houston is a different territory. Check which one a rebate page describes before you budget its number.

Texas has programs on paper, and none you can claim today

The state rebates have not launched. The Texas Comptroller's State Energy Conservation Office page, updated August 21, 2026, says rebates are not currently available, and that the HOMES and HEAR programs are in the planning and design phase, with a launch date to be set once the state has approval from the Department of Energy. Planned amounts are up to $8,000 for HOMES and up to $14,000 per household for HEAR. Planned is the operative word. There is no approved contractor list, so no Houston contractor can put a Texas HOMES or HEAR rebate in a proposal. If one does, do not sign it.

There is no state tax credit. Texas has no state income tax, so there is nothing to credit against. The Texas ENERGY STAR sales tax weekend covers appliances, not insulation.

One real Texas program exists, and it is not a rebate. The TDHCA Weatherization Assistance Program serves low income households through local subrecipient agencies, and its measures include adding ceiling, wall and floor insulation along with air sealing and duct work. Income is generally at or below 200% of the federal poverty level, and the work is delivered at no cost to the household. That also means it is not money a paying customer can claim. If that is your situation, call your local weatherization agency rather than us.

We have not found a City of Houston or Harris County insulation rebate for homeowners. Retail electric provider offers are not centrally published and change constantly, so ask yours.

Commercial buildings: 179D is a deduction, and its clock already ran out

Section 179D, the energy efficient commercial buildings deduction, is real. The IRS Instructions for Form 7205, revised December 2025, state that Public Law 119-21 terminated it for property the construction of which begins after June 30, 2026. That date is behind us, so for a warehouse we bid this month it is gone unless construction began on or before June 30, 2026.

The same instructions give a 2026 maximum of $0.59 per square foot at 25% energy saving, rising to $1.19 at 55%, with a five times multiplier only where prevailing wage and apprenticeship requirements are met.

Building envelope is an eligible system, but the property has to be certified under a plan that cuts the building's total annual energy and power costs for lighting, heating, cooling, ventilation and hot water by 25% or more against Reference Standard 90.1. Foam alone usually does not get a building to 25%. Foam plus lighting and mechanical work sometimes does. The retrofit route also requires a qualified retrofit plan and certification by a licensed architect or engineer.

It is a deduction, not a credit and not a rebate, claimed by the building owner on Form 7205. Whether your scope gets the building there is your engineer's and your CPA's call. What we contribute is the certification of installed thickness, R-value and coverage area we provide on every job, which your consultant can use as an input. How we bid is on the commercial page.

If you build homes, the IRS FAQ on the same law states the section 45L credit will not be allowed for any qualified new energy efficient home acquired after June 30, 2026. CenterPoint's commercial program has treated building envelope work as an eligible measure category with an IECC baseline, paid to a registered project sponsor. We read that in the 2025 manual, so confirm the current year's rules first.

What is actually on the table in October 2026

• A homeowner paying for a spray foam retrofit: nothing to claim. No federal credit in 2026, no state credit, no launched state rebate, and foam is not on the Houston program's materials list.
• An income qualified household: the Texas Weatherization Assistance Program, through your local agency, at no cost to you. Start there, not with a contractor.
• A commercial owner whose project began construction on or before June 30, 2026: 179D may be in play, decided by your engineer and your CPA.
• Manufacturer rebates: we have not found a consumer rebate on any major foam line. The one in this trade is a home builders association member program, built for builders and remodelers.

Frequently asked questions

Is there a federal tax credit for spray foam insulation in 2026?

Not for work placed in service in 2026. The IRS states the Energy Efficient Home Improvement Credit will not be allowed for any property placed in service after December 31, 2025. Texas has no state income tax, so there is no state credit either. Confirm with your tax preparer.

I put a deposit down in 2025. Does that still qualify?

The IRS test is when the property is placed in service, not when you paid, signed or ordered. A 2025 deposit on an attic sprayed in 2026 does not meet that test as the IRS words it, and the law that ended the credit carries no transition rule. Your preparer makes the final call.

Does CenterPoint pay a rebate for spray foam insulation in Houston?

CenterPoint Energy's 2026 Residential Standard Offer Program manual lists the qualifying ceiling insulation materials as Mineral Fiber Blanket, Mineral Fiber Loose Fill, Cellulose, Vermiculite and Perlite. Spray polyurethane foam is not among them, and that manual also states incentives are paid to project sponsors, not to customers.

Why do other websites say Houston insulation rebates pay 40% up to $750?

Because that is CenterPoint Energy Indiana's program, not Houston's. Indiana's 2026 Residential Insulation Rebate Application names the Indiana program, requires an Indiana account holder, and lists high-density and low-density foam among qualifying insulation types. Houston sits in a different CenterPoint territory with its own materials list.

Is there any program for a household that cannot afford the work?

Yes, and it is not us. The Texas Weatherization Assistance Program, run by TDHCA through local agencies, serves low income households at no cost, and its measures include adding ceiling, wall and floor insulation. Income is generally at or below 200% of the federal poverty level.

What to do next

If you were counting on a rebate to close the gap on an attic, it is not there in 2026, and we would rather you hear it from us now than from a preparer in April.

The attic page covers the work and the cost post has the ranges. Book a free assessment or call (281) 703-2700, and take this page to your own tax preparer before you rely on it. We install insulation. We are not tax advisers.