Solar panel installation in Katy, TX
From Cinco Ranch to Elyson, Katy roofs are some of the best solar real estate in the metro — big, recent, and mostly unshaded. Colony Solar, the solar division of Colony Builders, installs here with the permits, HOA paperwork, and CenterPoint interconnection handled for you, start to finish.
Backed by 40 years and 10,000+ Colony Builders customers. Free itemized quotes, zero pressure.
Which "Katy" you live in decides your permit path
Here's the thing most solar quotes skip: most of what everyone calls Katy is not inside the City of Katy. The Katy area spreads across three counties — Harris, Fort Bend, and Waller — and the big master-planned communities (Cinco Ranch, Cross Creek Ranch, Firethorne, Jordan Ranch, Elyson) sit in unincorporated county territory.
Why it matters: inside city limits, your project is reviewed by City of Katy Permit & Building Services. Outside city limits, there's no municipal building department — your project is governed by county requirements, the National Electrical Code, and CenterPoint's interconnection review. Different paperwork, different timelines, same obligation to do it right.
We confirm the jurisdiction from your address on day one and file everything ourselves — plans, engineering, electrical permit where required, and the interconnection application. Permitting is where solar projects stall; it's also the part a construction company is built for.
Katy solar at a glance
- Utility: CenterPoint territory — deregulated, so you pick your buyback plan
- Permits: City of Katy inside limits; county + utility process for most master-planned communities
- HOAs: can't say no (TX §202.010), can shape placement — we file the ACC application
- Property tax: 100% of added solar value exempt (file Form 50-123)
Roofs we see in Katy
Most Katy housing stock went up from the 1990s onward: two-story homes, composition shingle, generous uninterrupted roof planes and few mature-tree shading problems outside the older in-town blocks. That combination — newer roofs, big south- and west-facing planes — is exactly what makes an install clean and production strong. If your shingles are near end of life, we'll tell you before panels go up; reroof + solar in one project is our native trade.
How do Katy homeowners get paid for solar?
Katy sits in CenterPoint's deregulated territory, which means no traditional net metering — instead, you choose a Retail Electric Provider with a solar buyback plan. As of July 2026, competitive fixed-rate plans in CenterPoint territory credit roughly 7–10¢ per exported kWh, while weak plans pay 3–4¢ and quietly forfeit unused credits. Same roof, same sun — hundreds of dollars a year of difference, purely on plan choice.
We size Katy systems to your actual usage (oversizing just exports power at below-retail rates), then point you to the current best-fit plans before power-on. The full picture, with current plan examples, is in our guide to Texas solar buyback plans — and our calculator has a buyback-rate slider so you can see exactly what plan choice does to your payback.
What your HOA can (and can't) require
Texas Property Code §202.010 makes outright solar bans unenforceable. What a Katy-area HOA can require: an architectural review application before installation, panels that conform to the roof slope and don't extend above the roofline, and hardware in silver, bronze, or black tones. Practical translation: modern all-black panels installed flush — which is how we build anyway — sail through review. We prepare and submit the ACC paperwork with your documents, and we don't schedule the install until approval is in writing.
Katy solar questions, answered
Do I need a permit to install solar in Katy?
Depends on the address. Inside City of Katy limits: city permit through Permit & Building Services. In the unincorporated majority of the Katy area (Cinco Ranch, Cross Creek Ranch, Firethorne, Elyson): county requirements plus CenterPoint's interconnection review govern. We confirm your jurisdiction and file all of it.
Can my HOA stop the project?
No — §202.010 prevents prohibition. They can require an application and reasonable placement/appearance conditions (roofline conformity, black/silver/bronze tones). We handle the ACC application and get approval in writing before install day.
Does Katy have net metering?
No traditional net metering — Katy is deregulated CenterPoint territory, so you pick a buyback plan from a Retail Electric Provider. Competitive fixed plans pay ~7–10¢/kWh exported as of mid-2026. Full buyback plan guide here.
What does solar cost in Katy?
Typically $2.30–$3.50 per watt installed before batteries — roughly $18,000–$28,000 for a common 8 kW system, depending on equipment tier and roof. Run your own numbers from your actual bill, or see what solar costs in 2026.
Get the honest numbers for your Katy home
Roof assessed first, itemized quote, permits and HOA paperwork handled. If solar doesn't pencil for your house, we'll say so.
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