)
Indoor Air Quality Can Improve Your Homebuyers’ Satisfaction
Reading time: 3 minutes
Comfort
Healthy indoor air is one of those unseen benefits a home may have that are harder for homebuilders to market to customers compared to more visible upgrades like a soaking tub or quartz countertop. Even with the growing focus on health and wellness by many homeowners, promoting indoor air quality (IAQ) requires education, but the efforts can benefit builders in many ways, including increased customer satisfaction, fewer callbacks, and marketing opportunities.
)
Making Homeowners Aware of the Impact of Indoor Air Quality
Across social media, the news, retail, and other facets of everyday life, “wellness” trends reign supreme. The COVID-19 pandemic further fueled the movement.
It’s a moment that feels ripe for offering more robust ventilation systems, but a 2022 study by Panasonic found that while a healthy home environment is important to most homeowners, many don’t believe they have negative health issues from poor IAQ. Two out of five homeowners said they are uninformed about indoor air quality.
With healthy living top of mind, builders have an unprecedented opportunity to educate homeowners on the benefits of better indoor air and differentiate themselves in the process. The numbers and evidence are likely powerful to your customers: The EPA notes that exposure to polluted indoor air can cause immediate health impacts such as eye, nose, and throat irritation, headaches, and dizziness, while long-term exposure may lead to respiratory diseases, heart disease, and cancer.
Indoor air pollution can come from a multitude of sources, including obvious places like cigarette smoke and new furniture or pets, as well as lesser-known sources like excess moisture and cleaning products.
With homes tighter than ever, polluted indoor air isn’t replaced with fresh outdoor air like it used to be in drafty homes, leading to stale, stagnant air as well as moisture build-up on surfaces that can contribute to damage by mold.
Along with communicating the potential health consequences, consider providing homeowners with a relatable example, such as an aquarium or a swimming pool.
Everyone knows these water features are continually circulated and filtered, and receive fresh water regularly, to keep them clean and habitable.
The same principles hold true for our indoor air that is circulated and refreshed using mechanical ventilation.
)
Increasing Customer Satisfaction With Better Indoor Air
Educating homeowners on IAQ couples with the features your homes offer, including balanced ventilation systems, to help your homes stand out from competitors and support your marketing efforts.
Healthier indoor air can contribute to long-term customer satisfaction, as well. Along with providing overall peace of mind, homes with proper ventilation are more comfortable: they don’t retain smells (such as from cooking) for as long, they feel less humid and stuffy, and they experience no condensation on windows and walls. Over the long term, proper ventilation can help homeowners avoid moisture issues that lead to more extensive damage and callbacks.
Less visible is the potential for increased productivity. Studies show that in offices and schools with poor indoor air, productivity can suffer and absenteeism can increase. The impact in office buildings is so great that one study found that “the revenue gains from productivity, the cost savings from health, and the net added energy costs could allow the landlord to ask for a 10 percent increase in rent—and still leave room for the tenant to add more than $75,000 to its bottom line,” CRE Insight Journal cited.
While homes certainly aren’t office buildings, Americans and Canadians spend even more time in their houses. Moreover, with remote work increasing, the relevance of productivity has only grown.
“The revenue gains from productivity, the cost savings from health, and the net added energy costs could allow the landlord to ask for a 10 percent increase in rent—and still leave room for the tenant to add more than $75,000 to its bottom line,”
)
Educate Homeowners on Your Homes’ IAQ Benefits
Better indoor air quality can be a key differentiator for your homes, but you’ll need to communicate these benefits, and the reasons behind them, to potential buyers. Be sure to market to and educate customers on the benefits and why IAQ improvements—and the company offering them—are worthy investments.
Add details on your indoor air quality features to your website and printed materials, make it part of your sales pitch, and point out specific elements in graphics and throughout model homes.
In addition, it’s critical to educate buyers about their mechanical ventilation appliances, which can only do their jobs if used as directed and properly maintained. This includes running bath fans during and after every shower, using kitchen exhaust fans every time they cook, following manufacturer instructions for changing filters and using professional maintenance services for their fresh air appliances and other HVAC systems.
With wellness top of mind among homebuyers, there’s no better time to differentiate your homes, generate positive word of mouth, and ultimately increase customer satisfaction with healthy indoor air practices.
Subscribe to Fantech 5 News
Want more indoor air quality insights from Fantech? Subscribe to Fantech 5 News to get the latest IAQ trends and product updates delivered to your inbox.