Sustainable buildings outperform their conventional counterparts in all relevant areas—environmentally, socially, and financially, according to a new report from real estate agency PRDNationwide and the Queensland University of Technology (QUT).
The study, Your Green Guide: Residential Real Estate 2018, tracked 215 houses that had been bought and sold multiple times between 2004 and 2014, in Kelso, Townsville, QLD. Twenty-two of these houses had documented sustainability features.
Properties with recorded sustainability features took up to 13 days less to sell, and boasted a house median price that was 10% higher than those without sustainable features.
“Sustainability features mean different things to different people. Here, we have considered the function and layout of the space that will be used, the health and safety of occupants, how comfortable occupants are, the costs to occupants, and the lifespan of the building,” the report said.
Benefits of embracing sustainability
PRDNationwide has identified the top seven benefits of incorporating sustainability features into residential property:
- More savings on utility bills and less maintenance
- Reduced construction materials and emissions
- Less days needed to sell listed property
- Improved comfort and long-term lifestyle
- Greater median price
- Higher resale value
- Informed decision-making
Some of the top sustainability features homeowners can incorporate into their properties include:
- Installing roof, ceiling, and floor insulation
- Ensuring that all building materials are non-toxic
- Installing solar panels
- Utilising energy-efficient appliances
- Adding hard-wired photo electronic smoke alarms to bedrooms, kitchens etc.
- Ensuring that the home is located away from threats of landslides, soil slip, and flooding
- Utilising an open-floor plan (i.e. rooms can have multiple uses and are easily adaptable to a changing lifestyle)
