In the real-estate industry’s Multiple Listing Service, it’s often harder to find a “green” home than a home painted green.
That’s changing, as some MLS systems — used by agents to electronically list properties for sale — start to incorporate forms for including energy-efficiency and renewable-energy features.
Analysts see it not only as a benefit to green-oriented home buyers but as a tool for lenders and appraisers to correctly value a home’s efficiency enhancements.
The MLS for northern Colorado rolled the new system out late last year, and Denver’s Metrolist is expected to launch it soon.
The forms allow real-estate listings to show features such as energy-efficient appliances, passive or active solar collection, sustainable building materials, low-flow toilets and faucets, and water-saving landscaping.
“If you’re a buyer and want to buy a green home, there’s no easy way to do a search to identify what you’re looking for,” said Deb Kleinman, executive director of the Colorado chapter of the U.S. Green Building Council.
In the five-county northern Colorado MLS operated by Information and Real Estate Services, 98 listings — representing 1.4 percent of the total — have one or more boxes checked in the new green categories.
Brokers must submit certification or verification for many of the categories, such as a home’s energy-use rating and appliance efficiency — a provision to prevent the practice known as “greenwashing” in which a home’s efficiency is exaggerated.
The new feature “deals with the whole circle and cycle of home sales — seller, broker, buyer, appraiser,” said Lauren Emery, chief executive of IRES. “It provides data integrity and consistent information to view comparable properties.”
About 80 MLS systems nationwide have adopted the program.
One of its chief advocates, real-estate trainer and consultant Dave Porter of PorterWorks in Stanwood, Wash., said many appraisers don’t know how to value home-energy improvements. As a result, some homes under contract fail to close because appraisals come in below actual values.
“This will give the ability for appraisers to use comparable information,” he said. “It’s critically important for the industry.”
Steve Raabe: 303-954-1948 or sraabe@denverpost.com
