From McMansions to green homes: Modern homeowner priorities

By Emma Peterson. 

In this Contractor Outlook, we dive into what today’s homeowners really want alongside Allison Hadley.  

Allison Hadley is the spokesperson of American Home Shield (AHS), a home warranty provider in the United States. Allison was commissioned by AHS to conduct independent consumer research in the home services field. More specifically, her recent study focused on the growing demand for greener homes. To learn more about this, we invited Allison on to Contractor Outlook™ to talk about her findings.  

Allison’s study found that modern homeowners are beginning to prioritize green homes, which are homes that are more energy efficient than traditional structures. Allison shared what these homes look like, saying, “68% reported they were installing at least one energy efficient appliance. In many ways, this is the most easily affordable green home upgrade. Another 54% have solar panels, which is another relatively easy installation, and 40% have green landscaping (think rewilding lawns).”   

The drive for these improvements is two-fold, with many homeowners being concerned about both rising utility prices and environmental impacts. Allison explained, “When we asked people why they were making home improvements towards energy efficiency and sustainability, 68% said that they were concerned about their environmental impact and sustainability and 80% said they were prioritizing cost savings on utilities.” 

And this trend isn’t just with existing homeowners. Potential buyers are also looking for green homes as the future, “I also surveyed those who were looking to buy homes within the next year. And they said that they would be willing to pay an average of $73,827 more for an environmentally friendly, energy efficient green home than what they would pay for a more traditional home.” 

What does all this mean for contractors and builders? Homeowners and homebuyers are shifting in their priorities and the professionals that continue to grow and succeed will shift with them. Allison summed up the findings of the study, saying, “I asked all the homeowners who own green homes, would they rather have a bigger, more traditional, less environmentally energy efficient home, or would they rather have a smaller greener home? And 63% said that they'd rather have a smaller greener home. It really goes to show you that the McMansion era is coming to an end close and a green home one is beginning.”  

Listen to the newscast or Watch the recording to learn more about the priorities of the modern homeowner.