How Much Does highway Noise/Location Affect A Home's Value?

I will admit this post is in direct response to some feedback (or I should say lack of) I received from a few Realtors recently. For people familiar with Charlotte area we have a highway that circles three quarters of Charlotte ( why it is not finished is for another blog completely). Maybe within my lifetime I will see the completion of the highway around the Charlotte area...

But how much does the noise from the highway affect your home and home's value? In this economy and with so many choices out there; buyers have many choices to make and can be very specific as to what they want and do not want.

One area of concern that recently seems to be a topic of discussion among buyers is the location of homes to the current highway and the future development of the highway. How close is to close to the highway?

Noone wants to hear the highway noise as if they are standing on the highway, or see it from their home. But what is considered an acceptable distance and noise level? And what value do you place on that when looking to buy or sell a home?

I have had buyers recently refuse to go inside a home becuase when we pulled up in the driveway they felt the highway noise was to much. And I have taken other buyers in similiar homes where once inside you did not even know the highway was that close becuase of the sound deadening in the house and never realized how close we actually were to the highway.

So, I guess it comes down to personal preference and what someone considers acceptable. A person growing up in the city might say it is not that big of a deal becuase they are used to it. Someone growing up in the country might feel the direct opposite. But the dollar amount and value is going to be subjective to the buyer looking to purchase the home.

So, if you own a home near a highway consider the noise from the highway and price your home accordingly. Your market of potential buyers most likely has shrunk by 50% and you need to price accordingly to impact those buyers.

If you are looking to buy a home and like the home consider the location when placing an offer on it. If it is closely located to a highway now or future expansion of a highway you may be able to get a slightly better deal by leveraging that in your favor.

Dave diCecco
Realtor/Broker
www.davedicecco.com