Does the housing market value energy efficient homes? Evidence from the energy star program

The “Energy Star” certification of residential homes is a recent attempt in the United States to improve energy efficiency in the residential sector by incentivizing home builders to “build green.” We examine the effectiveness of this program by estimating homeowners' marginal willingness to pay for Energy Star residences in Gainesville, Florida. We use single-family residential property sales in Gainesville, Florida between 1997 and 2009. Using the hedonic method, we find that homeowners are willing to pay a premium for new Energy Star homes, but that this premium fades rapidly in the resale market.