Lowering heating costs 'top priority'

Homeowners are now more concerned about bringing the cost of their heating bills down as more people are considering energy efficient products when looking for a new property.

A study by SmartNewHomes showed that 82% of people looking for homes are now on the hunt for properties with energy efficient measures installed and 77% said this was because they wanted to save on heating and other bills.

This is a dramatic change in opinion from 2005 when over 80% said they would not consider environmentally friendly measures when looking for a home.

Steve Lees, director of SmartNewHomes, said: "With Government legislation forcing housebuilders to build all new homes to zero carbon standards by 2016, it is encouraging that buyers are now more receptive to energy efficient measures. Rising energy bills are a major concern for most families."

Homebuyers said they were mostly interested in products like solar panels, appliances with low energy consumption, or water butts which collect rain water.

Copyright Press Association 2012

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