Page 20 - Climate Control News Magazine August 2019
P. 20

Occupant comfort and sustainability
a priority for buyers
SUSTAINABLE HOMES WITH HIGH ENVIRONMENTAL RATINGS AND FEATURES LIKE SOLAR PANELS ATTRACT A PRICE PREMIUM IN AUSTRALIA TODAY.
IT'S CLEAR THAT buyers don't need convincing when it comes to sustainable homes, its just the terminology that creates confusion.
A new report by CRC for Low Carbon Living and the Australian Sustainable Built Environ- ment Council (ASBEC) found consumers rate occupant comfort, energy efficiency and a healthy environment as priorities when select- ing a home.
In fact two thirds of Australian home buyers prefer energy efficient homes when given a choice – but significant barriers prevent them from turning that desire into reality.
The first is confusion surrounding the term sustainability.
Australian consumers want sustainable homes – they just don’t use the word ‘sustainability’ when describing their desires.
Put simply, a sustainable home requires less energy to heat and cool, is more resilient to cli- mate and weather extremes and provides en- hanced occupant health and comfort which is exactly what buyers want.
However, despite these benefits consumers are confused by the terminology and lack of use- ful information.
The research found that the floor plans with additional sustainability’ features have, on aver- age, 8.6 per cent higher purchase preference than the standard version of the same design. This highlights a massive but currently untapped market for sustainable homes.
In a bid to tackle this problem, CRC for Low Carbon Living and the Australian Sustainable Built Environment Council (ASBEC) have re- leased a new roadmap for sustainable homes.
Preliminary economic modelling outlined in the report finds that accelerating Australia’s tran- sition to sustainable housing would deliver more than half a billion dollars of extra investment in the construction industry by 2030. It would also
create more than 7,000 new jobs and save Austral- ians $600 million on their energy bills.
While the opportunities are enormous, the re- port identifies several significant barriers.
“Investment decisions about sustainable tech- nologies are often made by building companies rather than individual home buyers. Discounts for volume purchasing, together with lock-in to supply chains, reduce the incentive for innova- tion,” the report said.
“Bespoke homes and renovations tend to in- volve smaller construction companies. Clients rely on these companies and tradespeople as im- portant sources of information and advice. How- ever, these builders have tight project budgets
FROM LEFT:
CRC for Low Carbon Living CEO, Deo Prasad. ASBEC executive director, Suzanne Toumbourou
CLIMATECONTROLNEWS.COM.AU
20


































































































   18   19   20   21   22