How Health and Wellness Attributes are Changing the Real Estate Market
It turns out that in the twenty-first century, health and wellness may be of more value than we are actually able to measure. Community organizers have been trying to develop health and wellness initiatives for the members of their community for years on end and have found that it is extremely difficult to influence the opinions of large groups of people and to try to change their health behaviors.
However in the recent months that real estate data has become available for, we are seeing that in actuality, health and wellness is becoming more important to the community than we think. At this point, the integration of health and wellness ideals into the lifestyles of people across the country is becoming more and more common. Health and wellness has actually become so important to some communities that data is showing an overwhelming correlation between the wellness aspects of certain neighborhoods, or areas of town and the attractiveness that those areas maintain in the real estate market.
Specifically, houses in areas with more wellness attributes are more desirable for families and for individuals who are conscious of their overall health. Also, the attributes of real estate and neighborhoods that buyers are paying attention to are increasingly focused on health and wellnes, including distances to parks and access to work out equipment or spas.
According to the “America 2015” report released by the Urban Land Institute, the importance of health and wellness aspects of a community are extremely important in real estate decisions. The report states that 87% of Americans value the quality of the environment, specifically air and water. 73% of Americans are looking for places where there is easy access to fresh produce and healthy food as a way to maintain good dietary behaviors. Another health and wellness attribute measured was he amount of green space and the access to parks and open fields, of which 55% of Americans are looking for in their real estate pursuits.
We cannot underestimate the value of our health and wellness and we are now seeing that this stance is common among those in the real estate market. As more people become educated regarding the importance of health and wellness, we can expect these characteristics of a community to carry even more weight moving forward.
Used under Creative Commons Licensing courtesy of Ines Hegedus-Garcia
