A study, "Walking the Walk: How Walkability Raises Housing Values in U.S. Cities," suggests adding "walkability" to the "location, location, location" mantra chanted by real estate agents describing well-kept neighborhoods with good schools and low crime.
When the organization CEOs for Cities analyzed ZipRealty data from 94,000 real estate transactions in 15 major markets, it found that in 13 of the 15 markets, higher levels of "walkability" boosted home values by $4,000 to $34,000 compared with homes with just average levels of "walkability."
CEOs for Cities is a group of urban redevelopment advocates who measure walkability with a "Walk Score." The score is presented as a number from 0 (car dependent) to 100 (most walkable).
Because the scores indicate the potential for added value, Walk Score founder Mike Mathieu would like to see them included in listings of homes for sale and properties for rent.
" 'Walking the Walk' shows definitively what we've always believed – that homes in walkable neighborhoods continue to be a good investment and are one of the simplest and most effective solutions to fight climate change, improve our health and strengthen our communities," Mathieu said.
Focusing on proximity, not the condition of the neighborhood, the score calculates walkability based on the distance from a home to nearby destinations in 14 categories, including transit, schools, parks, restaurants, shopping and entertainment venues. CEOs for Cities uses Google Search API to pinpoint the destinations.
Each category carries equal weight in the scoring. Points are based on the distance to the nearest destination in each category; the closer the destination, the more points awarded. The number of points declines as the distance increases. Destinations farther than a mile are not awarded points. All points are tallied and then normalized to generate a score from 0 to 100.
What do the scores alone mean?
- Walkers' Paradise (90-100): Most errands can be accomplished on foot and many area residents can get by without owning a car.
- Very Walkable (70-89): It's possible to get by without owning a car.
- Somewhat Walkable (50-69): Some destinations are walkable, but many daily trips require a bike, public transportation or car.
- Car Dependent (25-49): Only a few destinations are within easy walking range. For most errands, driving or public transportation is a must.
- Car Dependent (Driving Only) (0-24): You can walk from your home to your car. Few if any neighborhood destinations are within walking range.
But the study also compared the scores with home prices in 15 markets to find the correlation between higher walkability scores and higher home prices.
To make the comparison, CEOs for Cities looked at factors known to influence housing values, including characteristics of individual housing units (size, number of bedrooms and bathrooms, age and other factors), as well as location factors (income levels, proximity to the urban center and relative accessibility to employment opportunities).
After controlling for those home-value factors, the study showed a positive correlation between high walkability scores and higher home prices in 13 of the 15 housing markets studied. In the typical market, an additional one-point increase in Walk Score was associated with between a $700 and $3,000 increase in home values.
Comparing values of homes located in neighborhoods with average walkability scores to identical homes in above-average walkability neighborhoods in the same metropolitan areas revealed the more walkable neighborhoods generated a home-value gain (at the low end) of $4,278 in Dallas; $7,427 in Fresno, Calif; $10,338 in Stockton, Calif; $10,841 in Tucson, Ariz.; and $12,951 in Jacksonville, Fla. At the high end, the difference between average and above-average walkability scores meant a home-value premium of $34,345 in Sacramento, Calif; $33,763 in Charlotte, N.C.; $32,837 in San Francisco; $31,562 in Chicago; and $24,871 in Austin, Texas.
"These findings are significant for policymakers," said Carol Coletta, president and CEO of CEOs for Cities.
"They tell us that if urban leaders are intentional about developing and redeveloping their cities to make them more walkable, it will not only enhance the local tax base but will also contribute to individual wealth by increasing the value of what is, for most people, their biggest asset," she added.
Among the 15 metro areas in the study, only Las Vegas and Bakersfield, Calif., did not exhibit a positive relationship between walkability and home price.
In Las Vegas, a home with above-average walkability was valued at $7,200 less than a house with average walkability. That was attributed to market-condition anomalies specific to the area – higher values associated with properties farther from the central business district's more walkable areas and homes with more bathrooms actually depressed prices. In most markets, more bathrooms are a price enhancer.
In Bakersfield, where above-average walkability homes were valued at $2,242 less than those with just average walkability, the study considered the difference "not statistically significant" because of offsetting factors including fast growth and a negative correlation between housing and job proximity. Homes near jobs typically cost more.
