Wind Energy Projects and Property Values
Do Wind Turbines Lower Property Values?
The effect of wind turbine installations on property values concerns many communities hosting wind energy projects. In 2013, researchers at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory conducted a study regarding how utility-scale wind energy development affects house prices.
The authors collected data on nearly 7,500 sales of single-family homes situated within 10 miles of 24 existing wind energy facilities in nine U.S. states. They shared the results in the seminal work with the largest data set, titled The Impact of Wind Power Projects on Residential Property Values in the United States: A Multi-Site Hedonic Analysis. The analysis found that if property value impacts exist, they are too small and/or too infrequent to result in any widespread, statistically observable impact.
A 2016 study from the Journal of Real Estate Research found similar results, stating that “no unique impact on the rate of home sales near wind turbines” was found (see References for the full journal article).
Although wind energy projects may not lower property values overall, there is some anecdotal evidence that indicates individual homes or neighborhoods can be affected on a small scale. For example, myths claiming that wind turbines negatively impact property values can cause buyer apprehension that lowers home prices in the time right after a public wind energy project is announced, though home price reductions that may have occurred do not continue during project development and construction (see references).
Public education about wind energy projects, proper siting, and setback ordinances can all help mitigate any concerns people may have about wind energy impacting property values.
References
- Hoen, B. and Atkinson-Palombo, C. (2016). “Wind Turbines, Amenities and Disamenities: A Study of Home Value Impacts in Densely Populated Massachusetts.” Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory: Berkeley, California. Mark Thayer Direct Testimony, Exhibit 12. https://puc.sd.gov/commission/dockets/electric/2017/el17-055/exhibit13.pdf.
- Hoen, B.; Wiser, R.; Cappers, P.; Thayer, M.; Sethi, G. (2011). “Wind Energy Facilities and Residential Properties: The Effect of Proximity and View on Sales Prices.” Journal of Real Estate Research 33 (3). https://www.osti.gov/biblio/983511.
- Heintzelman, M.D.; Tuttle, C. M. (2012). “Values in the Wind: A Hedonic Analysis of Wind Power Facilities.” Land Economics. http://le.uwpress.org/content/88/3/571.abstract.
& Hinman, J. L. (2010). Wind Farm Proximity and Property Values: A Pooled Hedonic Regression Analysis of Property Values in Central Illinois. Illinois State University. Normal, Illinois. https://www.livingstoncounty-il.org/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/PR-Ex.-32-2010-Wind-Farm-Proximity-and-Property-Values-Central-Illinois.pdf.