Homebuyers' Interest in Green Home Features Increases With Energy Efficiency Cited as Top Priority
ZipRealty.com Introduces Transit Scores in Conjunction With New Green Survey
More than half of all home shoppers report that green home features, from energy efficient appliances to solar panels, are an important part of their purchasing decision, though only one percent of home listings market these features to buyers, according to results of a national survey announced today by real estate brokerage ZipRealty (www.ziprealty.com) (NASDAQ: ZIPR). The brokerage also announced that it is the first real estate company to integrate green-friendly Transit Score ratings into current home listings on its popular home-buying site, based on the popularity of the existing Walk Score feature, which scores the walkability of each listing. "A growing number of home shoppers are seeking out homes that offer strong public transit options, high walkabilty scores and green features," said ZipRealty's Chief Home Hunter Leslie Tyler. "Showing Transit Score ratings for all home listings on our website gives our clients additional information about alternative transportation that they need before making an offer on a home."
New Survey Indicates Green Features as a Priority Other highlights from the survey include:
See below for a list of the top five green features for homebuyers. "Sellers are missing an opportunity to market their home effectively to a wide net of home shoppers," said Tyler. "Appealing to buyers can be as simple as highlighting appliances as energy-efficient, which many homeowners choose today to save money themselves. Our survey suggests that sellers of older homes could make inexpensive changes, like switching to energy efficient light bulbs or appliances, to help their home stand out from others."
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Top Five Green Features for Homebuyers ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Green Feature Percent of Buyers rating "top" priority ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Energy efficiency 89% ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Water-saving devices 60 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Solar power 33 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Use of sustainable or environmentally-friendly 27 materials in home construction ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Ease of recycling and/or composting 20 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------
New Transit Score Ratings on ZipRealty.com ZipRealty is the first brokerage to feature the new Transit Score, an application developed by Seattle-based civic software company Front Seat. Homebuyers in most of the 35 markets ZipRealty serves will be able to locate Transit Scores along with Walk Scores (introduced in 2008), the relative "walkability" score for a home, under each listing's "Neighborhood Info" tab. Transit Score is calculated on the frequency, type of route (rail, bus, etc.), and the distance to the nearest stop on the route.
About the ZipRealty.com Survey
About ZipRealty, Inc.
About Walk Score/Transit Score Add to Digg Bookmark with del.icio.us Add to Newsvine Laura Zilverberg Allison & Partners 480-776-6418 ziprealty@allisonpr.com |
|