Report: green homes to bolster struggling property sector

On the same day as housebuilder Taylor Wimpey announced a loss of £1.54bn for the first six months of the year, a new survey from the Energy Saving Trust has suggested energy efficient homes could help to breathe new life into a flagging property market.

Half of the 2,090 UK homeowners surveyed for the research said they believed homes with greener features would be easier to sell in the market while 53 per cent of all householders said they would be willing to pay an average £3,350 more for an energy efficient home.

Philip Sellwood, chief executive of the Energy Saving Trust, said the credit crunch has led homeowners to be more aware of environmental factors.

"It is really encouraging to see the extent to which green measures have become an integral factor when buying and selling houses," he said. "In the current economic climate, it makes sense to ensure that the running costs of the home you are living in or buying are as low as possible as well as helping to cut down on your carbon dioxide emissions."

The research also found that under selling a home's green credentials could have a serious effect on its price.

Over three quarters of those surveyed agreed that having a "poor" energy rating on their Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) could lead to buyers haggling down the price of their home, while two thirds agreed that in light of the current economic climate home-buyers are more likely to consider a home's EPC rating to ensure a home has lower-running costs.

Energy Performance Certificates are part of the government's recently introduced Home Information Packs (HIPs) and tell buyers how energy efficient a home is on a scale of A to G.

But despite HIPs being compulsory in England and Wales more than half of those surveyed by the Energy Saving Trust felt estate agents do not know enough about energy efficiency performance.

Peter Bolton King, chief executive of the National Association of Estate Agents, said that despite the implied criticism, the industry was committed to promoting greener homes. "While there is always room for improvement, our members do take the EPC very seriously," he said. "[They] will flag it up to both vendors and purchasers, including it as part of the property particulars, while many of them go further and include it on their web sites [as well]."