WASHINGTON – In a recent survey by the National Association of Realtors, 63 percent of agents and brokers said promoting energy efficiency in listings is very or somewhat valuable.
The survey, which garnered more than 2,000 responses from a sample of about 4,740, was intended to gauge member sentiment regarding sustainability issues in the real estate industry.
Findings from the report:
- Thirty-two percent of respondents reported that their Multiple Listing Service has green data fields, and respondents typically used the green data fields to promote green features and energy information.
- Forty-eight percent found clients were at least somewhat interested in sustainability.
- Forty-two percent of homes with green certifications spent neither more nor less time on the market.
- Seventy-four percent of respondents said properties with solar panels were available in their market. Thirty-four percent said properties with solar panels increased the perceived property value.
- The home features that clients listed to their agent or broker as very important included windows, doors, and siding, proximity to frequently visited places, and comfortable living space.
- Eleven percent of respondents said a high-performance home (defined as a systematic, building-science approach to home improvements that increase indoor comfort, health, operational efficiency, and durability) had an increase of 1 to 5 percent of the dollar value offered compared with other similar homes.
- Nine percent of brokerage firms had experience working with residential building repurposing.
- Fifty percent of respondents said that in the past 12 months, they had been directly involved with a property with green features, either on the buyer or seller side.