Ready. Set. Sell. How Energy Efficiency Can Help Sell Your Home. A Seller s Guide from Next Step Living. NextStepLiving.com Toll-Free:

Help Sell Your Home.

A Seller’s Guide from Next Step Living

NextStepLiving.com

Toll-Free: 866-867-8729

As you prepare to put your home on the market, make sure energy efficiency is on your to-do list. Yes, we know this is a busy and stressful time for you. We’d like to help.

First, know that increasingly, energy-efficient houses:

 Stand out. Sales of green-certified single-family homes in Massachusetts jumped by 110 percent from

2012 to 2013, according to a report by Craig Foley, chief of energy solutions at RE/MAX Leading Edge.  Command a higher price. Existing homes with a third-party green certification sold for 30 percent more

than their uncertified counterparts, according to a study cited by Green Real Estate Investing News.

Feel any better? We think you will if you consider the suggestions we’ve put together in this ebook, “Ready. Set. Sell. How Energy Efficiency Can Help Sell Your Home.”

With helpful information from real estate agents and appraisers, from home inspectors and our own energy advisors, this ebook lays out what you should do, why it’s important and how to get it done. Easily and affordably. As if that weren’t enough, you’d be doing right by the planet too, shrinking the carbon footprint of your soon-to-be former home.

Comfort. Savings. Sustainability. What a great combination.

As a New England homeowner all too familiar with the high cost of heating and cooling a house, think about your prospective buyers: They want comfort and savings too.

Happy reading — and selling. Good luck.

Ready. Set. Sell. How Energy Efficiency Can Help Sell Your Home.

2 How does energy efficiency

impact the appraised value of a home?

“Energy efficiency is preferred by buyers, because it is good for the environment, saves money for the owner and is often an indicator of quality in construction. Energy-efficient homes are also more comfortable, being free of drafts and quieter than non-energy-efficient homes.”

— Kathleen Bowen Ha LEED Green Associate American Society of Appraisers

Making a

Move?

—Next Step Living

Table of Contents

Ready

Get a Home Energy Evaluation.

Quick Fixes.

Go Beyond Your Evaluation.

Create (Inside) Curb Appeal.

Document Everything.

Set

What Agents & Appraisers Don’t Do.

Get the Right Agent.

Inform the Appraiser.

Sell

Homeowner Priorities.

Best Foot Forward.

04

05

06

07

08

09

10

11

12

13

14

15

16

Get a Home Energy Evaluation.

A home energy evaluation gives you a point-by-point analysis of the energy efficiency of your home, and ways to boost that efficiency, many of them free or highly subsidized.

With a home energy evaluation, you get a thorough overview of how to make your home cooler in the summer and warmer in the winter while shrinking your monthly utility bill and your carbon footprint — all of which can make your home more attractive to potential buyers.

Want to sell your home faster and at a better price? Why not get a home energy evaluation?

“Appraisers need metrics, so show them your

home energy audit.”

— Kathleen Bowen Ha

LEED Green Associate American Society of Appraisers

Sell Bookmark

A recent study showed that homes with third-party green certification command a selling price that averages 30 percent higher than homes without any green certification. How to get more green in your home and your pocket?

NextStepLiving.com |  866-867-8729

Get a Home Energy

Evaluation.

LEARN MORE ABOUT

A HOME ENERGY

EVALUATION.

Read more at NextStepLiving.com/Evaluation

Watch one at NextStepLiving.com/Watch

Hear from a homeowner at NextStepLiving.com/Homeowner

Quick fix: efficient light bulbs Insulation and air sealing check Quick fix: low-flow showerhead

Combustion safety test

Ready. Set. Sell. How Energy Efficiency Can Help Sell Your Home.

It generally takes just a few hours and leaves you with an action plan of recommended next steps. (Please see p.7 for Go Beyond Your Evaluation.) Your energy advisor may also make some quick fixes, right on the spot, like swapping in high-efficiency, compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs) that will cut your utility bills immediately.

“Buyers value lower utility

costs, and a home energy

audit can help sellers

start reducing those

costs right away.”

— Craig Foley

Chief of Energy Solutions RE/MAX Leading Edge

6

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The not-so good?What New Englanders can’t see can hurt them when it comes time to sell, especially if the house is plagued by holes and cracks that leak air and generate outsize heating and cooling bills.

Air sealing, sometimes included in a home energy evaluation and typically subsidized, can dramatically

reduce drafts (and in warm weather keep living space cooler), instantly improving comfort and trimming utility costs. Another help: Insulation. Also often heavily subsidized by local or state programs, it can cut up to 20 percent off heating and cooling bills, according to Energy Star®_.

DID YOU KNOW?

The typical homeowner will save, on average, about $500 per year with an energy evaluation and related weatherization.

Source: Next Step Living

Sell Bookmark

Here’s the good news and the not-so-good news. The good: You’ve taken your first step with an energy evaluation to make your house more energy-efficient — and more attractive to potential buyers.

Go Beyond

Your Evaluation.

“Making sure attic insulation is in place and not crushed

under stored items is easy and very inexpensive.”

— Frank Lesh

Executive Director American Society of Home Inspectors

Think about door sweeps and weather stripping too. “Weather stripping is the least expensive update. Changing the furnace filter or cleaning baseboard radiators is another one of the most common and least expensive improvements,” adds Lesh.

ABOUT AIR SEALING

& INSULATION

There’s no getting around it:

Weatherization is messy and noisy work. But we do our best to control the dust, limit the noise and clean up after ourselves. If you have a fireplace, please don’t use it on the two days before the start of your project. Any ashes in your fireplace would blow out into your living space when we do a blower door test to assess your home’s air tightness.

“Almost everyone I know who has had

an energy

audit

has found leakage in areas they

did not suspect.”

Ready. Set. Sell. How Energy Efficiency Can Help Sell Your Home.

WHAT IS ENERGY STAR

®

_?

Created by the Environmental Protection Agency, Energy Star is a program that sets energy-efficiency standards for many consumer products, such as:

• Heating, cooling and ventilation equipment • Dehumidifiers

• Water heaters

• Refrigerators and freezers • Dishwashers • Clothes washers • Consumer electronics • Light bulbs 8 Sell Bookmark

If you answered yes to any of the questions above, it’s time to consider an energy-efficiency upgrade. Just as you’d probably fix the broken fence in your yard or plant some shrubs in front of your home to attract lookers, you should do the same indoors.

I

 Replacing your old heating and cooling equipment with Energy Star-labeled equipment can cut your buyer’s annual energy bill by almost $200.

 New technologies that generate improved results include a heat pump hot-water heater that creates the same amount of hot water as a conventional electric water heater but cuts heating expenses up to 62 percent, a great selling point.

 A state-of-the-art gas boiler can achieve up to 98 percent thermal efficiency versus 70 percent to 80 percent with a conventional boiler.

While You’re at It . . .

Don’t forget the kitchen. Cheaper than remodeling, new appliances can create a great face lift — and generate meaningful energy savings.

Warning: This may be painful. Put yourself in a buyer’s position.

 Would you lose interest in your home when eyeing your decades-old boiler that looks every day of its age?

 Does your water heater look like it belongs in an antiques shop?

 Is your house the only one on the block without central air conditioning?

Create (Inside)

Curb Appeal.

This is a selling point for you, though, (see Homeowner Priorities on p. 15) so avoid a last-minute paper chase: Before you put your house on the market, have these documents on hand, and make sure your listing agent presents them to buyers:

 Findings and recommendations from your home energy evaluation  Contracts and paid invoices for energy-efficiency upgrades

 Before-and-after bills for all utilities for the previous 12 months to show how you’ve trimmed your home’s operating costs

”For the buyer, the big benefit of energy efficiency

is lower utility bills . . . Buyers notice comfort. They

experience it directly. Demonstrating the features

behind their comfort validates their experience.”

— Kathleen Bowen Ha

LEED Green Associate American Society of Appraisers

What are the biggest missed opportunities for taxpayers when it comes to getting credit for home energy improvements?

“ Taxpayers tend to be poor record keepers. Receipts for any major improvement that increases the value of your home should be saved and discussed with a tax professional. Whether a tax credit or deduction is allowed shouldn’t matter. Major home improvements add to the home’s basis (cost), which reduces any capital gains taxes on a future sale of the home.”

— Cindy Hockenberry Research Manager National Association of Tax Professional

The only thing better than making energy-efficiency improvements is documenting those improvements. That’s because much of the work you’ve done may be hidden behind walls or are otherwise hard to see, as are the energy and money savings that they generate.

Document

Everything.

SET.

Set Bookmark

After you’ve done everything you can to make your home more energy-efficient, you’re ready to put it on the market. You should shop for a listing agent who knows how to make the most out of the added value you’ve created for the next owner of your house and for an appraiser who knows how to quantify that value.

Not every agent understands what’s involved in making a home energy-efficient and the significance of energy efficiency. And, if that’s the case, it’s likely the agent won’t be able to convey any enthusiasm or insights that could help tip a buyer in your direction.

So when you’re choosing who will sell your property, test potential agents’ knowledge of energy-saving systems – and their excitement about them.

POP QUIZ FOR

LISTING AGENTS

What’s the minimum R-value for attic insulation in New England? What’s the cost for a utility-sponsored home energy evaluation? How many energy advisors does it take to screw in a CFL?

Get the answers on p. 17.

NextStepLiving.com |  866-867-8729

What Agents &

Ready. Set. Sell. How Energy Efficiency Can Help Sell Your Home.

12

Set Bookmark

You’ll want a broker like Craig Foley, chief of energy solutions at RE/MAX Leading Edge. Presented with the 2013 EverGreen award, Foley advises, “Hire an agent who can talk the talk. If a listing agent tells you there’s no value in energy efficiency, go somewhere else. There’s no question that buyers attach value to lower operating costs, mainly utility costs.”

Review any ads or marketing material your agent prepares about your home to make sure they highlight features like your solar power system that generates all of your home’s power for a fraction of what it used to cost.

Get the

Right Agent.

WILL YOUR AGENT

SELL YOUR HOME’S

EFFICIENCY?

”Many listing agents and brokers

ignore energy-efficient features.

In 2013, agents potentially

underreported 60

percent of Energy Star

home sales.”

— Craig Foley

Chief of Energy Solutions RE/MAX Leading Edge

If you think an appraiser, generally retained by the buyer’s lender, will recognize and evaluate all the energy improvements you’ve made, think again.

“There’s a big gap between appraisers, homeowners and the building-performance community,” says Kathleen Bowen Ha, a LEED green associate and chapter vice president of the American Society of Appraisers. “Most appraisers are not well-trained in how to identify energy-efficiency items. They don’t put anything down on the appraisal form in the energy-efficiency field.”

When the appraiser arrives, be sure to point out the energy-efficiency improvements that have the greatest potential to increase your home’s value like energy-efficient windows and a heating and cooling system properly sized for your home.

”Homeowners have a right to be in the residence when

the appraiser visits, so they can make their points about

energy-efficient features to the appraiser directly.”

— Kathleen Bowen Ha

LEED Green Associate American Society of Appraisers

Inform the

Appraiser.

DID YOU KNOW?

The ubiquitous Uniform Residential Appraisal Report dedicates just three lines out of six pages to heating and cooling systems and energy efficiency.

Source: American Society of Appraisers

SELL.

Sell Bookmark

Now’s the time for all your preparation to pay off. Literally. You’re ready to show (and show off) your home to potential buyers.

Remember: Energy-efficiency improvements are a selling point. Use them as you negotiate. The investments you’ve made have lasting value for the new owner of your house. For some, the environmental impact may be the most important. Others may value the charm of a historic home minus old drafts that new insulation has eliminated. Or, lower operating costs may be especially compelling. For example:

 Air sealing and insulation contribute as much as 20 percent in savings on

heating and cooling costs.

 Compact fluorescent lamps generate 75 percent in energy savings compared to

incandescent bulbs.

 Low-flow faucets and showerheads save homeowners between 25 percent and

60 percent on water.

 Programmable thermostats help cut heating and cooling costs by 5 percent to

15 percent.

 A solar power system saves up to 25 percent on electric bills and adds $20,000 to

the value of a home for each $1,000 in annual energy savings.

When asked to pick their top two priorities, 56 percent of website visitors to the Next Step LivingHome Energy Wizardselected comfort and savings.

Comfort/Savings Savings/Comfort Comfort/Environment Savings/Environment Environment/Savings Environment/Comfort N = 510 149 136 88 77 42 18 56% 12% Planet Top Priority: People

© 2014 Next Step Living, Inc. All Rights Reserved

Homeowner

Priorities About

Energy Efficiency

Homeowner

Priorities.

Ready. Set. Sell. How Energy Efficiency Can Help Sell Your Home.

16 Just as you’ll stage your home with furniture and

accessories to show off its spaciousness and structural features, stage your energy improvements too: When the appraiser arrives, be sure to point out the energy-efficiency improvements that have the greatest potential to increase your home’s value. According to Kathleen Bowen Ha of the American Society of Appraisers, that’s “quality windows, doors, and an efficient heating and cooling system properly sized to the home.”

 Pull back your drapes or raise the blinds to reveal your sparkling clean, energy-efficient windows.  Clear away anything blocking a buyer’s view of your newly installed Energy Star®_{-rated furnace,} boiler or other appliance.

 Prepare a packet of documentation showing what energy-efficiency improvements you’ve made. (Don’t forget the findings and recommendations made by your energy advisor after your home energy evaluation.)

Best Foot

Forward.

LAST BUT NOT LEAST:

GOOD AIR QUALITY

“In general, homeowners should

keep their homes clean. Be sure

to vacuum. Carpets are a sinkhole

for dust, debris and food particles

which can promote mold and

bacteria growth when combined

with moisture and high humidity.

Basements should be dehumidified,

personal belongings should not

be stored directly on the floor or

against a wall and as little organic

matter as possible should be stored

in the basement.”

— Ron Fallon

Indoor Air Quality Association

Interested in Learning More?

 Energy Tips from Advisors of the Month

 Energy Tips on the Bright Ideas Blog  FAQ: Energy Savings

 Home Energy Wizard

 How to Increase the Appraised Value of Your Home, Kathleen Bowen Ha, American Society of Appraisers

 Indoor Air Quality: What You Don’t Know Could Hurt You, Ron Fallon, Indoor Air Quality Association  Report of Energy Efficiency, Valuation of High-Performance Homes & Market Transformation

on Massachusetts Residential Real Estate 2013, Craig Foley, RE/MAX Leading Edge  Tax Benefits of Home Energy Improvements, Cindy Hockenberry, National Association

of Tax Professionals

 Think Your Home Is Energy-Efficient? See What a Home Inspector Says, Frank Lesh, American Society of Home Inspectors

ANSWERS TO POP QUIZ

(from page 11)

In New England, R-38 is the minimum R-value for attic insulation.

A home energy evaluation is available at no cost to most Massachusetts ratepayers. The Connecticut Home Energy Solutions assessment costs less than $100.

One! And he may install dozens of these highly efficient light bulbs in an hour.

Taking the Mystery out of Home

Energy Efficiency and Solar Power.

One of the fastest-growing companies in the country, Next Step Living® is the leading provider of whole-home energy solutions. Headquartered in Boston’s Innovation District, Next Step Living makes it easy and affordable for people to live in homes with a low environmental impact. A one-stop service provider of informed advice, funding guidance and expert work, Next Step Living partners with more than 400 municipalities, civic organizations, leading corporations and utility companies to deliver energy-efficient and environmentally friendly solutions for better living. Since 2008, Next Step Living has helped almost 100,000 New England homeowners achieve approximately $26 million in energy savings, which is expected to grow to more than $130 million in the next five years. Next Step Living makes our world better. Please visit NextStepLiving.com for more information.

Ready. Set. Sell. How Energy Efficiency Can Help Sell Your Home.

100,000

homes served in New England

Largest

home performance contractor in the Northeast

Leading

provider of whole-home energy solutions

95%

of our customers would refer us to others

More than 400

community, corporate and nonprofit partners

18

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