Have Real Estate Agents' Perceptions on the Importance of Sustainability in Housing Changed?

Energy used in housing is a major contributor to Australia’s energy consumption and associated environmental impacts. As market facilitators and influencers, real estate agents are expected to play an active role in motivating home buyers in purchasing energy efficient housing through advertising. This research aims to examine whether real estate agents effectively incorporate sustainability features in their advertisements and if their perceptions of the importance of advertising sustainability features have changed over the last five years. Mixed method research was employed to determine whether environmental issues were considered to be a major factor by real estate agents when advertising detached dwellings. The first set of in-depth interviews was conducted with 10 real estate agents in 2013, followed by the second set of interviews with another 10 agents in 2017. This was followed by an analysis of actual housing advertisements in Melbourne metropolitan and regional areas. It was found that the attitudes of real estate agents on the importance of advertising sustainability in residential properties have not changed significantly even though they have become more aware of the climate change debate over the years. They would only emphasise sustainability characteristics in their marketing campaigns if those features would have noticeable financial implications. The findings suggest the free market strategy is likely to imbue sustainability into housing markets, but market facilitators, buyers and sellers have not yet reached a critical mass in terms of them being considered a norm. The necessity of reviewing the current legislative mechanisms in order to align the intent of the legislation with the actual outcomes is highlighted.