The recently released annual Energy Pulse study from Shelton Group suggests that consumers in the market for a new home prioritize energy-efficient features over luxury items.
Eighty-five percent said they’d pay more for an Energy Star-certified home, and their preferences for individual features bore that out: more people wanted Energy Star appliances in their new homes (52%) than wanted a pool (42%), a state-of-the-art sound system (40%), or a home theater room (29%).
Among the highest-income respondents ($100,000+ per year), the top five answers to the question “Which of the following features do you want your new home to have?” were Energy Star-certified appliances (59%), water-efficient toilets (58%), high-efficiency HVAC (58%), water-efficient showerheads (52%) and Energy Star home certification (51%). Luxury items, meanwhile, fell further down the list: 43% wanted a wi-fi enabled sound system, 40% wanted a pool, and 31% wanted a home theater room.
The study also included a deep dive into how consumers feel about smart home technology, uncovering key insights about how and whether consumers will embrace the connected home. Read the results in Shelton Group’s free report, The Smart Home Gender Gap: What It Is and How to Bridge It.
