QUINCY — For some, tearing down the white picket fence and creating waterfront views may be the New England dream. Only recently have the shoreline and front yard become too close. We’ve seen it from rising tides to severe weather, and now Zillow is offering climate impact assessments for real estate listings.
“I thought it was going to happen before,” Jeff Baldock, a Squantum homeowner, said of the change on Zillow. “There will be a king tide this week for the next few days, and my yard is only a few feet above that, so if we got a storm surge I would be screwed.”
As a firefighter, Baldock crews often use the area for flood training. He wonders if it’s time to move.
“I would like to be on higher ground, so climate change and flooding are on our radar,” Baldock said.
Home buyers are thinking about climate risks
According to Zillow research, 80% of home buyers are thinking about climate risks. That is why the company has started preparing climate impact assessments for listed properties. The factors range from problems such as flooding to potential wind damage.
“We know affordability is a challenge for many, and insurance costs are a big part of why monthly costs are rising,” said Orphe Divounguy, senior economist at Zillow.
He says Zillow partnered with a company called First Street. They work to predict the future impacts of climate change on an area.
“They have become the standard for modeling financial climate risk. It is used in real estate, banking, government and even insurance,” says Divounguy.
The ratings on the website may vary from place to place, even if the two houses are not far apart. How First Street gets its ratings is complex. They combine new technologies and model predictions with decades of peer-reviewed research for the area. This helps to give an idea of what might happen in an actual event.
“It’s really important that people have all their information when making housing decisions,” Divounguy says. “Sellers [should] working with a real estate agent. Climate risk data is an important part of the data. It’s here whether we like it or not.”
Do home buyers take this into account?
“I’ve talked to several real estate people and they say potential buyers are willing to take on the risk,” Baldock said.
“Climate risk is just one factor people consider, but it’s not the only factor, right? People are still moving to thriving job centers and people like waterfront properties with beautiful views,” says Divounguy.
At least now buyers know what risk they are taking.
Mike Sullivan
