Green homes have $25K higher resale value in Texas

Texans who own homes that meet LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) and other green building standards make an average of $25,000 more than the owners of conventional homes when they sell, according to a recent study.

The study found that Texas homes built to LEED standards between 2008-2016 showed definite “green premium” when sold. Those homes got 8 percent boost in value, while homes built within a broader range of green standards saw a 6 percent increase.

That can mean some pretty significant cash, since, according to UT professor Greg Hallman, who noted that the average new Texas MLS dataset used for the study, conducted by The University of Texas at Austin McCombs School of Business in partnership with the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), cost $311,000.

Titled “The Value of LEED Homes in the Texas Real Estate Market: A Statistical Analysis of Resale Premiums for Green Certification,” the study is based on an analysis of more than 230,000 homes in Texas, including more than 3,800 green-certified homes

The Green Building Council, an advocacy and policy group, has also found that ,on average, LEED-certified homes use 20-30 percent less energy than a home built to standard code. Its 2015 Green Building Economic Impact report found that the residential green construction market is expected to grow from $55 million in 2015 to $100.4 million in 2018, representing a year-over-year growth of 24.5 percent. Currently, according to the organization, there are more than 6,890 homes certified or pursuing LEED-certification in Texas.