Home sales are up: Here’s the key to selling that energy-efficient house

Show green home buyers the exact amount they’ll save. 

The past few months have shown a re-energized real estate market, with rising demand and limited supply.

“Buyers very much want to buy,” says Michael Chandler, a green architect and builder based in Chapel Hill, N.C.

“Getting things financed is still a pain. Appraisals are coming in low, sometimes $50,000 less than the price of construction. That means buyers have to put down larger down payments.”

Buyers value the health benefits and comfort of green homes, but by necessity, their home buying choices most often come down to dollars and cents.

To sell buyers on the value of energy-efficient homes, show figures on how much less they will pay for monthly utility bills and, therefore, how much more they can afford to pay for the house.

For example, if the monthly utility bill is $50 less than a comparable home, with a 3.5 percent mortgage on a 30-year loan, they can afford to pay $11,250 more for their home.

In many cases, the difference in the utility bills will be even more dramatic, but home shoppers must be shown the real numbers to understand how much flexibility a green-built home can give them.