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Distance To Work Is Buyers New Motive

(Saying that transportation has become a major issue is an understatement as reports on gas and oil prices usually begin and end a newscast these days.)

While rising gas prices may only cost the average homeowner a few hundred extra dollars a year, transportation costs are beginning to affect entire property purchases as taxes are rising as well.

“Energy Prices May Dictate Where Homes are Built and Bought,” written by Al Heavens and published November 16, 2006 in Realty Times, explains the increasing weight the issue of gas and energy prices has on the housing market.

“Builders and real estate agents in the state next to mine have joined to oppose a plan that would increase the state real estate transfer tax to fund public transportation, meaning that $3,358.24 would be added to the cost of buying a home, based on the median price of $241,600 for an existing home.”

This tax may be coming at the worst possible time as the housing market is currently being viewed as “turbulent” and higher-priced homes for sale will suffer a significantly higher tax that will be noticeable and damage the market even further.

This tax increase is actually said to be an effort to increase public transportation, so if that is true, why wouldn’t the government just keep rising gas prices; but taxing real estate doesn’t seem to make much sense.

Public transit locales and distance from or to has become a common buzz among developers and real estate agents.

“In fact, ‘house miles’ (the number of miles a home is from employment, retail, education and entertainment) are becoming a deal breaker or maker, according to land use industry experts at ULI's [Urban Land Institute] recent annual fall meeting in Denver.”

There is a developing connection between energy use and community design. This is creating a positive pressure to develop effective ways to reduce the energy consumed by buildings and automobiles.

“The cost of distance, along with heating and cooling, is a factor in energy consumption that has a direct impact on housing affordability, according to ULI senior fellow John McIlwain pointed out, noting that ‘miles per house’ could become a standard measurement of location desirability.”

The new Generation Y will be entering the housing market soon and placing an even bigger emphasis on “green and sustainable” development.

“‘A new generation of home buyers is looking at the world differently, and to them, green building will be a given,’ McIlwain said. ‘The issue of energy savings will be a fundamental driver in their decisions on what and where to buy.’”

A survey conducted by ULI in 2005 concluded that an increasing amount of consumers are willing to use more mass transportation just to cut down on fuel costs. In fact, transportation costs are the second largest consumer expense at 19 percent of their monthly income. Mortgage expenses are number one at 33 percent.

The “wrap-around patio” may no longer be as eye-catching in the real estate classified ads, as “walking distance to subway” is becoming.

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