The SNWA rebate and artificial turf
$5 per square foot from SNWA, plus up to $575 from the City of Henderson. Artificial turf qualifies — if the project is built to the program's conditions.
$5 per square foot from SNWA, plus up to $575 from the City of Henderson. Artificial turf qualifies — if the project is built to the program's conditions.
The Southern Nevada Water Authority's Water Smart Landscapes programme pays property owners to remove grass. Artificial turf can be part of a qualifying conversion, but the rules are specific and the sequence matters enormously.
Do not remove any grass until SNWA has completed its pre-conversion site visit. A staff member has to validate the turf areas before work starts. If the grass is already gone, the conversion is ineligible and there is no appeal. This is the single most common way homeowners lose the rebate.
Apply first. Wait for the visit. Then call us.
| Property type | Rate | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Single-family residential | $5 / sq ft | First 10,000 sq ft, then $2.50 / sq ft |
| City of Henderson bonus | Up to $575 | 400 sq ft minimum conversion |
| Qualifying trees (SNWA) | $100 each | New living trees planted in the conversion |
| Qualifying trees (Henderson) | $50 each | Stacks with the SNWA tree incentive |
| Commercial / HOA / multifamily | Varies | Rates and caps differ by property class and fiscal year funding |
Rebate rates, caps and terms change. Confirm current amounts with SNWA before budgeting — we will help you check at the estimate.
A 600 square foot front lawn conversion at $5 per square foot returns $3,000 from SNWA, plus up to $575 from the City of Henderson. Against a project priced between $4,200 and $8,400, the rebate covers a meaningful share — and on smaller, simpler conversions it can approach half.
That changes the decision for a lot of people. It is worth understanding properly rather than treating as a vague marketing line.
This is where artificial turf projects go wrong. Turf is accepted as a surface treatment, but it does not on its own satisfy the programme. The conversion area has to meet all of the following:
The turf must allow air and water to pass through. Solid backing, plastic sheeting and concrete are not permitted. We install permeable backing as standard, but if you are comparing quotes, ask — cheaper turf often is not.
At least half the conversion area must be covered by living vegetation from SNWA's approved plant list once mature. This surprises people who imagined replacing grass with turf and nothing else. In practice it means turf panels set within desert planting rather than wall-to-wall green — which is also the look that actually suits a Henderson property.
Worth knowing: at SNWA's discretion and on request, plant coverage can be assessed across the whole front or back yard where the conversion happened, not just the converted patch. Existing mature plants outside the immediate area may count toward the requirement.
Watering systems must be drip with a filter, pressure regulator and emitters rated at 20 gallons per hour or less, free of leaks and malfunctions, with components visible for inspection. If you keep part of your lawn, the remaining sprinklers must not spray the converted area.
The converted area needs mulch, rock, bark or permeable artificial turf as ground cover. Bare soil does not qualify.
Between application, scheduling, the site visit, approval and contractor availability, the gap between deciding and installing is usually weeks rather than days. As the 2027 AB 356 deadline approaches, commercial and HOA demand is expected to compress schedules further for everyone.
If you want this done in a particular season, start the application well ahead of when you want the work.
We are not SNWA and we do not process rebates. What we do is design and build the conversion so it satisfies the programme conditions, supply the invoices and photographs you need for submission, and tell you honestly at the estimate whether your project looks likely to qualify.
If your plan will not meet the 50 percent plant coverage requirement, we will say so before you apply rather than after you have been declined.
Nevada Revised Statutes prevent a homeowners' association from restricting the installation of water-saving landscape. Some boards are unaware their covenants conflict with state law. Your HOA will still have a say in design, but it cannot simply prohibit a water-smart conversion outright. More on HOA rules here.
Most estimates are scheduled within 48 hours.
Images are representative of the work we do.
Tell us the space and we’ll give you a firm, written price. No pressure, no obligation.
