Highlights of the green home market
Just did a massive $30 ad campaign on Facebook, lol. Here are the numbers by gender and age of responses. I found it interesting...
People reached Clicks to website
W 1828 20
M 1321 14
Unknown 27 0
Ages
18-24 22%
25-34 12%
35-44 9%
45-54 14%
55-64 24%
65+ 18%
Clicks to website percentage 18-24 21%, 55-64 27%, 65+ 27% - 75% of clicks to the website were in the outer ends of the age brackets. You can find my FB page at: www.facebook.com/SustainableRealEstateConsultingServicesbtw
In Massachusetts, we are fortunate to have one of the top ten multiple listing services (MLS), the data base that real estate agents use to market home features. Multiple Listing Service Property Information Network (MLS PIN) located in Shrewsbury, Massachusetts (MLS PIN) was one of the first MLSs to adopt green fields in 2009. These fields support high-performance home features.
MLS PIN’s green data fields include several fields for listing agents bringing a high-performance home to market. For a developer that has hired a real estate agent to bring their HPH to market, it is critical that the listing agent accurately enter all of the homes features in the data base. Inaccurate representation of a home’s green features are problematic for a variety of reasons. Over stating the homes energy features is known as ‘green-washing’ and opens all of the parties in the transaction to potential litigation; under-reporting of the homes green features is marketing opportunity lost to a growing audience of home buyers searching the data base for energy efficient homes built with sustainable products. Under-reporting of data also can make valuing the home accurately by real estate appraisers and underwriters a challenge.
In my 2014 report on the MA HPH marketplace, I discovered evidence that both under-reporting and over-reporting of a home’s green features was prevalent in Massachusetts real estate sales of 2013.
MLS PIN offers a listing agent an opportunity to note a home that was certified by third party institutions like LEED. By checking a box in the MLS an agent can indicate if a home has been green certified.
I first discovered there might be a problem of under-reporting when I was searching green certified condos for a buyer in 2013. When I searched for available green condos, I realized that there were LEED certified condos not appearing in the MLS, although I knew that they were LEED certified condos in the price range and area that my buyer was interested in. I decided to investigate this issue more closely for my 2013 report.
I discovered that there was evidence that supports for every one green certified single-family home accurately recorded in Massachusetts in 2013, 1.5 single family homes were under-reported. For condominiums sales, evidence of accurate reporting by listing agents was even worse, for every one condo accurately recorded two were not. The evidence was clear that real estate agents were unaware of the tools their MLS gave them to market properties to buyers.
There was also evidence that the MLS PIN data field ‘Solar Features’ was over used by listing agents. Evidence suggests that this field may have been inappropriately used 39% of the time in 2013, up from 28% that I reported in my 2012 study.
I have been studying the emerging high-performance home market for several years. The numbers have been impressive. In Massachusetts we have seen an explosive growth of solar panels on homeowners rooftops in the last few years. The states largest multiple listing service has an impressive array of green data fields that real estate agents can use to market homes that have HERS Index Scores or green certifications like LEED. Data around consumer demand for homes that are more energy efficient and healthier to live in and how the real estate industry may or may not be supporting demand is evident.
I have also spent time in my advocacy work to talk about the opportunity the real estate industry has to be part of a solution for the energy and environmental challenges that we face. In the U.S. almost 40% of total energy consumption can be attributed to the buildings that we live and work in; in Massachusetts the number is higher - 50%. The inevitability of a deeper intersection between the real estate and energy industries is very clear to me.
This blog will explore both the opportunities and the challenges the real estate industry faces in supporting market transformation of buildings that are more energy efficient and healthier to live in...
Donec id justo non metus auctor commodo ut quis enim. Mauris fringilla dolor vel condimentum imperdiet.
Commodo cursus magna, vel scelerisque nisl consectetur et. Donec id elit non mi porta gravida at eget metus.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Vestibulum id ligula porta felis euismod semper.
Quisque iaculis facilisis lacinia. Mauris euismod pellentesque tellus sit amet mollis.
Sed purus sem, scelerisque ac rhoncus eget, porttitor nec odio. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet.
Vivamus pellentesque vitae neque at vestibulum. Donec efficitur mollis dui vel pharetra.
Praesent id libero id metus varius consectetur ac eget diam. Nulla felis nunc, consequat laoreet lacus id.
Donec id justo non metus auctor commodo ut quis enim. Mauris fringilla dolor vel condimentum imperdiet.
Commodo cursus magna, vel scelerisque nisl consectetur et. Donec id elit non mi porta gravida at eget metus.
Praesent id libero id metus varius consectetur ac eget diam. Nulla felis nunc, consequat laoreet lacus id.