Overhead Lines Don’t Affect Home Value, Appraisers Say

They may be unsightly, but overhead lines are not really affecting property values, a trade journal said this week.

A peer-reviewed article in The Appraisal Journal revealed that there is actually very little data to prove that the high-voltage overhead transmission lines (or HVOTLs) are negatively impacting sales prices.

The three authors, Orrell C. Anderson (who specializes in real property damage economics), economist Jack Williamson, and research analyst Alexander Wohl looked at articles and data in the U.S., Europe, and New Zealand from 2010 forward.

The journal is a quarterly technical and academic publication of the Appraisal Institute.

“Survey-based research finds adverse perceptions and general dislike for HVOTLs, but sales data reveals little to no diminution in prices,” the authors wrote. “Stated preferences by market participants in this case generally do not translate into noticeable price effects as revealed in market data.”

The article also acknowledges that technology and scope of studies on how these overhead lines affect home prices is evolving, even including sociologists to study the local opposition that occurs regarding the lines.

Changes to how power is distributed may also generate new research and new results, too. “As efforts to curb carbon emissions and decentralize the power grid continue, research will continue into the effects, if any, of these possible disamenities on property values,” they write.

We also assembled a team of experts to discuss whether what they’ve seen anecdotally jibes with what the authors of the article found.

We asked them all the same question: Do overhead lines affect home sales?

“It’s certainly not ideal, but usually it’s buyer preference,” David Maez of Vivo Realty said. “Some it will bother and others it won’t.”

“If the home has enough good points some will overlook. But I would say it’s not a deal killer, depends on the whole package.”

“I would not say that power lines or towers directly affect the sales price of the home, but they may limit buyers,” Dallas Realtor Maria Barrera said. “If you like the home and price is in your range, you go for it.”

Realtor Jenny Gamble with Russell Trenary Realtors said that she has noticed a slight lag in how long it takes to sell a home near an overhead power line.

“Like homes located on busy streets or backing to retail, it usually takes a home longer to sell if it is in close proximity to power lines or substations,” she said. “Some buyers are not bothered by power lines but many are for aesthetic and safety concerns.”

Gamble said that can translate to a smaller buyer pool and more days on the market, and that has to be taken into account when pricing the property.

“In Dallas, the power line issue has softened with city’s plans for the easements being converted into walking and bike trails — like the Northaven Trail,” she added. “Easy access to trails can help some buyers overlook the power lines.”

That “yeah-it-matters-but-only-slightly” outlook seems to be true all over the country.

“I find that for a buyer it’s either a deal breaker or it’s not, and from those who do not see it as a deal breaker, you will get market price,” said Susan Kadilak, a Realtor in the Burlington, Massachusetts, area said. “I put one in contract today actually with high tension wires running behind the lot.”

However, that doesn’t mean that at some point homeowners don’t wish for a different view out their backdoor. Davey Devlin of The Art Of Landscaping powered by Scapes Incorporated said that he has been approached to improve the view after a home buyer moves in.

“I’m not sure it’s something every buyer notices right away, as they are so focused on the home,” he said. “But it is definitely something that homeowners will spend money on trying to hide or soften with strategically placed trees when they have lived there awhile and it comes time to renovate their backyard landscape or install a pool.”

It’s something that frequently comes up as a problem looking for a solution during the design phase of backyard landscaping, he added.