House buyers 'look for environmentally friendly features'

Posted: 10 Apr 2007 13:05:02 GMT

Those looking to buy property are increasingly concentrating on 'green' attributes, according to new research.

Those looking to buy property are increasingly concentrating on 'green' attributes, according to new research.

Nationwide discovered that given a choice between two houses of similar size and value, over three-quarters of potential property buyers would opt for the house equipped with solar panels, rather than the one without.

Commenting on the research, Fionnuala Earley, chief economist at the building society, argues that energy efficient homes may command higher prices in future.

"[With] the recent publication of the government's climate change bill and the pressure on households to become more energy efficient, it is inevitable that environmental home improvements will have some impact on house prices over the long-term," she states.

Other figures contained within Nationwide's report include that 94 per cent are "put off" from purchasing a property if it is at risk of flooding and "tidiness" was an important consideration with 55 per cent of respondents stating they would be deterred from a house if it was untidy.

Nationwide states that it is the fourth largest mortgage lender in the UK and the world's largest building society.


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