Are Energy-Efficient Homes More Valuable? The Answer Is Yes – by an Extra $112,000
When building their new home, Layne Phan and George McGarry, the owners of McGarry Constructions, aimed to set the benchmark for sustainable construction.
McGarry, a 41-year-old originally from Ireland, believed that Australian homes should meet European insulation standards. Consequently, the couple established a sustainable construction business and constructed their own energy-efficient (EE) home from the ground up to set this standard.
According to Domain, they built the duplex in Caringbah with sustainable features – such as double glazing, insulation in the internal and external walls, solar panels and a rainwater tank – and have put the second of the pair up for sale.
“You’ll find a lot of homes don’t have [external and internal insulation],” says Phan, 43. “That is probably one of the easiest ways to make your home sustainable and to reduce your energy bills.
“It does cost more, you do invest in insulation quite a bit, but it’s worthwhile. Once it’s done you can feel that it does improve the temperature control in the house.”
