While green home improvement projects are certainly a boon to the environment, they are also helping homeowners save money and add to the value of their homes.
According to a recent study from Angi, 92% of respondents are investing in the environment through home projects and lifestyle changes. The top reasons are: it's important to the homeowner; to save money in the long run; and to improve the home's resale value. While 68% of homeowners spent up to $5,000 on eco-friendly home improvements this past year, an additional 24% spent more than that, with 14% spending over $10,000.
According to homeowners and home improvement professionals, the most common eco-friendly home projects of the past year were:
- Sealing/caulking windows
- Improving insulation
- Installing smart thermostats
- Installing low-flow/dual-flow toilets
- Installing Energy Star appliances
Homeowners haven't only improved how eco-friendly their home is, they’ve also made lifestyle changes to decrease their own impact on the environment. Top lifestyle changes from the past year included:
- Started washing clothes on cold (47%)
- Replaced regular lightbulbs with LED bulbs (42%)
- Got better at recycling (39%)
- Switched to eco-friendly cleaners/detergents (31%)
- Started taking shorter showers (29%)
When looking at what the most popular eco-friendly home projects will be in the year to come, pros and homeowners alike included the following at the top of their lists:
- Installing smart thermostats
- Using only eco-friendly cleaners/detergents
- Improving insulation
Pros also noted that homeowners have become more willing to use recycled materials over the past year, and they expect that to continue through this year. They have also seen homeowners upgrading windows to smart, multi-paneled, dark-tinted or thermal options to save energy.
Home professionals are also making eco-conscious changes when operating their businesses. Nearly half (46%) said they changed multiple things about their business to be more eco-friendly, and an additional 17% changed one thing in the past year. An additional quarter (26%) said they haven't made any changes but are considering it this year.
The most popular eco-friendly updates for home pros this past year were:
- Using only eco-friendly cleaners/detergents (66%)
- Recommending Energy Star appliances (63%)
- Using sustainable packing/shipping materials (49%)
- Driving electric/hybrid vehicles to worksites (38%)
