Green home features have grown in popularity among homeowners, who are willing to pay a premium for energy-efficiency. But a new study from Realtor.com shows they may not have to shell out more to be eco-friendly.
The online real estate site analyzed current listings in the top 200 U.S. metros to determine the market availability of “green” homes with any of seven eco-friendly features, such as solar panels, smart thermostats or bamboo floors, and evaluated how much more – or less – these homes may cost a prospective buyer in each market. As these eco-friendly features have become more common in U.S. homes, the price for green has come down.
Southern and Western states lead the way in green technology. Prospective buyers in the Fort Collins, Colo., metro area have the highest likelihood of finding a home with integrated “green” features, with 36% of its April 2018 listings having at least one sustainable living feature. The median price per square foot was the same when comparing listings with and without green features.
Following Fort Collins are the Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, Texas and San Jose/Sunnyvale/Santa Clara, Calif., metro areas where 35% of listings have green features. Green homes in Dallas commanded a median price per square foot of only 4% more than homes without, while green homes in San Jose actually cost 5% less than those without.
Top Markets with Green Amenities, from Realtor.com:
| Rank | U.S. Metro | Percentage of “green” homes | Metro median price per square foot | Feature median price per square foot | Price per Square Foot % Difference |
| 1 | Fort Collins, Colo. | 36% | $170.4 | $171 | 0% |
| 2 | Dallas-Fort Worth- Arlington, Texas | 35%e | $139.1 | $144 | 4% |
| 3 | San Jose-Sunnyvale -Santa Clara, Calif. | 35% | $738.9 | $701 | -5% |
| 4 | San Antonio-New Braunfels, Texas | 34% | $128.8 | $130 | 1% |
| 5 | Tulsa, Okla. | 33% | $96.7 | $115 | 19% |
| 6 | Boulder, Colo. | 25% | $257.7 | $267 | 4% |
| 7 | Salinas, Calif. | 21% | $498.5 | $429 | -14% |
| 8 | Atlanta-Sandy Springs – Roswell, Ga. | 20% | $121.5 | $132 | 9% |
| 9 | McAllen-Edinburg- Mission, Texas | 19% | $93.2 | $107 | 15% |
| 10 | Santa Cruz- Watsonville, Calif. | 17% | $565.7 | $544 | -4% |
Of the top 10 “green” metros, buyers in Tulsa, Okla., will pay the biggest premium – 19% – if buying a home with existing eco-friendly features. Buyers in Salinas, Calif., have the biggest price advantage, as “green” listings are actually 14% below the median home price. However, researchers in the study note that while three California metros show that “green” homes are less expensive relative to the median home price in their respective areas, keep in mind that the median home price in these metro is significantly higher than those in other states.
Plus, in today’s low-inventory market, location and the price of land can easily override the desire for eco-friendly features, says Javier Vivas, director of economic research for Realtor.com.
California had the highest concentration of listings featuring solar panels, with the San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, Calif., area leading the list at 6.1% of total listed homes. In all of the top 10 markets beside Prescott, Ariz., and Fresno, Calif., the prices of solar panel homes were the same or less than the median home price. According to the study, buyers in Salinas, Calif., save on average $233,850 on homes featuring solar panels when compared to the metro’s median listing price of $917,050. However, in Prescott, Ariz., new homeowners will need to add $78,200 to the metro’s median home price of $400,050.
Homes with programmable thermostats commanded a premium in most markets–a whole 20% more in Montgomery, Ala., 17% in Tulsa, Okla., 15% in the McAllen-Edinburg-Mission, Texas metro area, and 12% in the Oklahoma City metro area. Tulsa has the highest proportion of smart thermostat home listings at 31%, followed by San Antonio at 28% and Fort Collins, Colo. at 25%.
The study also found that four Connecticut metros have the highest concentration of ENERGY STAR-rated home listings on the market in April, but most buyers will need to pay between 21% to 26% more than the median home price per square foot in the area. In the Greensboro-High Point, N.C., metro, the fifth highest concentration market at 1% of total listings, buyers will pay 41% more per square foot. The only metro that does not require a premium is the Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk metro area in Connecticut, where ENERGY STAR-rated homes account for slightly over 3% of active listings. While the median home price is the most expensive of the top five metros at $792,050, buyers can save $37,050 on average for a ENERGY STAR-rated home, according to the study.
