According to the NAHB, new homes are less expensive to maintain: new homes bring savings in reduced energy and maintenance expenses.
Data from the American Housing Survey (AHS) provides more insight:
- For routine maintenance expenses, 26% of all homeowners spent $100 or more a month on various upkeep costs. However, only 11% of owners of newly constructed homes spent this amount.
- 73% of new homeowners spent less than $25 a month on routine maintenance costs.
- For energy expenses, on a median per square foot basis, homeowners spent 81 cents per square foot per year on electricity. Owners of new homes spent less: 68 cents per square foot per year.
- For homes with piped gas, homeowners spent on average 50 cents per square foot per year vs. new home owners spent just 34 cents per square foot per year.
Lower Maintenance Costs in New Homes Bring Savings over the Life of Ownership
New homes cost less to maintain due to reduced operating costs. Also, these reduced costs result in lower insurance bills as well.
The median cost for all homeowners of property insurance is 39 cents per square foot, while it is only 31 cents per square foot for owners of new homes.
As building science continues to improve, the flow of benefits continues to increase from building a new custom home.
Read more at the NAHB’s Blog.