Most renters will pay more for green features

Home buyers even more so

Matt Dietrichson, Aug 14, 12.

New surveys show that over one-half of renters are consistently willing to pay more money for environmental features that they consider important, according to RCLCO:

RCLCO recently ran an Advisory article regarding homeowners and their willingness to pay for environmental features in a home. Only 20% of buyers stated that they wouldn’t pay any more for environmental features even if the features saved them money or were good for their health. This was based on a July 2012 national survey of both owner and renter households. RCLCO asked: “If you were going to move, would you be willing to pay more for a house/in monthly rent for the environmental features (such as energy efficient appliances or environmentally friendly paints) that are important to you?”
Renters are far less interested in paying for environmental features than owners. Approximately 40% of renters stated that they would not pay any more for environmental features even if the features saved them money or were good for their health. Interestingly, a higher percentage of renters than of owners were willing to pay more if the features were good for the environment. This is likely due to the age of the renters—both younger renters and younger buyers have a higher propensity to pay more for green solely for green’s sake.

RCLCO fielded a comprehensive survey of renters in 2009. Although the 2009 and 2012 surveys asked somewhat different questions, RCLCO was able to compare the 2009 and 2012 data by using the crosstabulations. The results were remarkably consistent, suggesting that those willing to pay more in rent for environment features is stable and not related to where we are in the housing and economic cycles.

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