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What will you pay for an energy-efficient home?

Col DuttonSponsored
UDIA WA President Col Dutton.
Camera IconUDIA WA President Col Dutton. Credit: The West Australian.

UDIA WA, along with our research partner Urbis, recently undertook the Home Purchasing Sentiment survey, where we asked respondents for their thoughts on the property market.

One part of the survey looked at people’s attitudes towards energy-saving features in their home and how much they might be willing to pay for those features.

Interestingly, and perhaps in a sign of shifting priorities for many buyers, 91 per cent of Perth respondents said they would be interested in adding energy-efficient features to a newly purchased home.

Across Australia, Perth respondents were the most interested in energy-saving features in a new home, ahead of Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne.

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Overall, Western Australians might be interested in energy-saving features, but they are still not willing to part with too much extra money to pay for it.

Across all respondents, the majority (47 per cent) were willing to pay less than $5000 extra, while 35 per cent would consider spending between $5-10,000 for energy-saving features in a new home, with just nine per cent willing to part with more than $10,000.

Not surprisingly, younger respondents were the most interested and most willing to pay extra for these features, with 57 per cent of those aged between 25 and 34 years old willing to pay up to $5000 and a further 32 per cent willing to pay between $5-10,000 extra.

While the initial outlay is important, the payback period on energy efficiency is critical, with 43 per cent of respondents selecting a time period of between three to six years as being important, followed by 31 per cent seeking cost recovery in under three years.

While the timeframe of three to six years is probably quite realistic, those looking for payback in less than three years may be disappointed, although there are several variables, including size and initial cost of the measures that you choose to install.

If you are interested in a sustainable and energy-efficient home, there are many new developments that offer a range of sustainable features, including solar packages, water-saving technology, design features and more.

An easy way to find a new development that is addressing these types of issues, is to look for an EnviroDevelopment-certified project.

EnviroDevelopment is a scientifically based assessment program that awards certification to projects that achieve outstanding performance across a range of elements, including energy, water, waste, materials, ecosystems and community.

For more information, visit www.envirodevelopment.com.au.

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