Commercial Geothermal Market Remains Strong

This news is mostly about commercial buildings, not homes, but it's worth knowing where things stand. Geothermal heating and cooling uses pipes buried in the ground to move heat instead of burning fuel or running a standard air conditioner. On the residential side, federal tax credits for home geothermal systems have gone away. But the commercial market is different: incentives from the Inflation Reduction Act for businesses, schools, offices, and apartment or condo buildings remain in place until 2035, and industry sources say that market is growing.

For homeowners, the direct takeaway is limited. The tax credit story confirms that federal help for putting geothermal in your own house is no longer available the way it once was, which matters if you were considering that upgrade. The rest of the news, about geothermal expanding into distribution centers, data centers, college campuses, and large multifamily developments, describes commercial-scale projects rather than anything homeowners can access themselves.

One detail worth filing away: an industry source noted geothermal works even in warm climates, not just cold ones, since it was used successfully in the desert Southwest with ground temperatures around 85 degrees. That could be relevant if you've assumed geothermal only makes sense somewhere colder. Since commercial incentives don't apply to homes, and residential federal credits have ended, anyone still interested in home geothermal should look into whether their own state offers separate rebates or incentives.