A new bill introduced in Congress by Sens. Michael Bennet (D-Colo.) and Johnny Isakson (R-Ga.) would call for loans going through Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and the Federal Housing Administration include the costs associated with energy usage for that home. These costs would be applied to the normal ratios utilized by lenders in assessing one's ability to afford a specified mortage amount. In addition appraisers would be required to adjust a home value accordingly for homes with higher energy efficieny. Currently many appraisers are not certified or trained to understand energy efficiency and do not include such information. This is one major reason a professional realtor that understands the impact these improvements have on value are useful when fighting taxes or working with lenders to accept a current contract price.
If this bill goes forward the current lending ratios would most like be adjusted accordingly. Provided this bill does not negatively impact the ability to obtain loans I believe it can only help the overall market.
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