5 ms·

Wouldn't landlords have the same incentive? By lowering the cost of utilities for their rental property they can increase the share of rent they keep as profit

by mb7733 6y ago

Wouldn't landlords have the same incentive? By lowering the cost of utilities for their rental property they can increase the share of rent they keep as profit (in the case that utilities are included in rent) or charge more rent, based on the fact that the property is more desirable with the cheaper utilities / better environmental footprint. Renewables are nothing new here. The same incentives encourage landlords to make properties generally energy efficient and desirable. Don't get me wrong, I know the realities of rental housing. Many landlords do not give a shit, especially in markets without much housing. But as a general rule, the incentives are there, and eventually will have a large impact on the rental market. If most properties are solar powered, a rental that is not will have come with a discount.

photojosh 6y ago
In Australia, the renter almost always pays the power bill (excepting share houses, usually students). It's hard to market "you'll spend less on power so that's why the rent is higher".
- mb7733 6y ago
  Of course it's not the headline on the rental ad, but that is a factor in what makes a rental property desirable. If you're not taking average utility bills into account when looking for a rental, you should be. Maybe this is more relevant in cold climates. As a student I once rented an old house where the heating oil bill would surpass the rent in the winter. I won't make that mistake again, even if the rent on the house is cheap. A self sufficient unit with 0 power bill would be pretty attractive to me as a tenant.
  - photojosh 6y ago
    My experience with renting (up until 2 years ago) was always that demand exceeded supply and so we couldn't put things like appliance energy efficiency into the must-have list. And yeah, in quite a temperate part of Australia here... cooling is more important than heating.

by mb7733 6y ago

photojosh 6y ago

In Australia, the renter almost always pays the power bill (excepting share houses, usually students). It's hard to market "you'll spend less on power so that's why the rent is higher".

mb7733 6y ago
Of course it's not the headline on the rental ad, but that is a factor in what makes a rental property desirable. If you're not taking average utility bills into account when looking for a rental, you should be. Maybe this is more relevant in cold climates. As a student I once rented an old house where the heating oil bill would surpass the rent in the winter. I won't make that mistake again, even if the rent on the house is cheap. A self sufficient unit with 0 power bill would be pretty attractive to me as a tenant.
- photojosh 6y ago
  My experience with renting (up until 2 years ago) was always that demand exceeded supply and so we couldn't put things like appliance energy efficiency into the must-have list. And yeah, in quite a temperate part of Australia here... cooling is more important than heating.