Does outfitting your home with updated, energy efficient appliances really add value to your home? According to recent research, the value add of energy efficient appliances is more dependent on your agent and the location of your home. If you manage to choose the right selling agent, green-certified homes can sell for 2.1% to 8% more than similar homes in the area that are not green certified. Ultimately, the premium or slightly higher sales price that you can secure on your sale depends on how well versed the real estate agent is at selling green home features.
Studies followed home sales in San Francisco, Virginia, and Maryland saw as much as a 5% price difference between homes sold by agents who were trained in selling green properties versus those who weren’t. In cases where the properties were not heavily marketed or officially certified as green (even if they have green features), this premium often dropped to as low as 1%.
If you are in the market to sell your house and you know that it is certified as a green home, make sure to look for an agent that has a GREEN designation. If you are an agent looking to understand how to market green homes, the GREEN designation class is offered by the National Association of Realtors.