Queensland’s Solar For Renters Scheme Heats Up

Queensland’s Supercharged Solar for Renters program is beginning to gain traction, with more than 250 applications now conditionally approved and several installations already completed, according to Queensland Treasury.

What’s The Latest With Queensland’s Solar for Renters Program?

“The Queensland Government is delivering cost-of-living relief for Queenslanders through the Supercharged Solar for Renters program to help reduce energy bills. Since its launch in December 2025, over 250 applications are now conditionally approved, and multiple installations already complete,” a Queensland Treasury spokesperson told SolarQuotes.

The initiative provides landlords with financial support to install rooftop solar on rental properties, allowing tenants to benefit from lower electricity bills.

How The Solar For Renters Program Works

Queensland’s Supercharged Solar for Renters program offers landlords rebates of up to $3,500 to install solar photovoltaic systems on rental properties. Under the scheme, landlords must apply for approval before installing a system, with rebates issued after the installation is completed and verified.

The $26.3 million state scheme is expected to support around 6,500 rental households and help tenants save roughly $700 per year on electricity bills.

A few hundred approvals only represents a small share of the intended scale, but it is still early days in the program’s three-year timeline.

The scheme requires landlords to obtain tenant consent before installing solar on a rental property, and installers must follow specific program requirements before a rebate can be claimed. These conditions are intended to ensure tenants receive the benefits of the system once installed.

The Split Incentive Problem

While rooftop solar is common on owner-occupied homes in Australia, renters have historically been far less likely to benefit.

One reason is the so-called “split incentive” that exists in rental housing. Landlords typically pay the upfront cost of installing solar systems, but tenants are the ones who benefit most from the lower electricity bills. That dynamic can make landlords reluctant to invest in rooftop solar unless incentives are offered.

Advocacy group Solar Citizens says renters remain one of the largest groups currently missing out on the financial and environmental benefits of rooftop solar.

A recent Solar Citizens report on solar access for renters highlighted widespread support for policies that help tenants share in rooftop solar savings, noting that many renters face rising energy costs but have limited ability to install solar themselves.

Solar Citizens has proposed a national target of 30% of freestanding rental homes with rooftop solar by 2030, claiming this would deliver 4 GW of clean energy and avoid approximately 2.6 MT of CO₂ every year.

In Western Sydney today Federal Energy Minister Chris Bowen will appear at Solar Citizens’ Powering Our Suburbs Policy Forum, which is focused on unlocking solar for rentals and apartments.

Solar For Renters Spreading Across Australia

Queensland is not the only jurisdiction exploring ways to expand solar access to renters. Victoria has offered rebates for solar on rental properties since 2019 through its Solar Homes program, which provides incentives for landlords to install rooftop systems on leased homes.

In South Australia, the Liberal Party has proposed a $20 million “Solar for Renters” program ahead of the state election later this month. The policy proposes rebates of up to $2,000 for landlords installing solar on rental homes, alongside an interest-free loan of up to the same amount.

A Large Untapped Solar Market

Around one-third of Australian households now rent their homes, meaning a significant share of the population cannot directly install rooftop solar. Programs like Queensland’s aim to address that gap by giving landlords financial incentives to invest in solar systems while allowing tenants to benefit from lower electricity costs.

Whether such schemes can scale quickly enough to significantly expand solar access across the rental sector remains an open question.

Landlords considering solar can read our guide to installing solar on investment properties.