Dr Sally Sims

Purpose - Climatic conditions in Poland vary tremendously each year with temperatures exceeding 25°C in the summer and sub-zero in the winter. Therefore the provision of adequate heating and cooling in residential, public and industrial buildings is essential. Poland has recently embarked on a refurbishment process known as -œthermomodernisation-, which focuses on improving buildings' thermal and energy efficiency. This paper aims to present the results from a case study of refurbished apartments in Olsztyn, Poland, to determine whether this process increases market value.

Design/methodology/approach - The research focuses on property in Olsztyn, Poland where residential property is typically situated in apartments within high-rise and low-rise buildings.

Findings - The majority of housing stock in Poland was built during the 1970s to 1990s when the thermal properties of building materials were not considered in the construction process, the thermal performance in most residential buildings is very low and heating costs unacceptably high. The results suggest both occupiers and professionals consider thermomodernisation benefits the occupiers by reducing energy and maintenance costs and improving the amenity value of a home. However, whilst both thought that property value was increased this increase was not significant.

Practical implications - This paper provides information on the financial benefits to the occupier from -œthermodernistion-, and encourages professionals to highlight these benefits when marketing property.

Originality/value - No published research has explored this issue. This paper addresses this situation.

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to establish whether or not asking price can provide a reliable indication of the impact of a negative externality when transaction data are scarce.

Design/methodology/approach - Until recently, transaction data within the UK were either unobtainable or expensive. Subsequently, an analysis of the value impacts of living near negative externalities (such as high voltage overhead power lines (HVOTL)) relies almost entirely on valuer expertise. Since behavioural research suggests that valuers often anchor to asking price which, in theory, is based on the selling agent's opinion of the likely transaction value of a property, the argument is made that -œasking price- provides a reliable indication of the impact of a negative externality when transaction data are scarce. This theory is tested through an analysis of the real versus perceived impacts of an HVOTL on proximate house prices.

Findings - The results, whilst providing additional evidence to support the relationship between value diminution and the presence of an HVOTL near residential homes, suggest that agents' marketing price does not capture the true impact of this type of negative externality and should therefore be treated with caution by practitioners seeking to establish the value of this type of property.

Originality/value - The results of this article add additional evidence to support the findings from previous studies in this field.

'Sustainable' or 'green' commercial buildings are frequently seen as a growth sector in the property investment market. This research examines the emergence of sustainable commercial buildings in both the UK and overseas. The empirical part of the paper is based on a telephone survey of 50 UK corporate (private sector) occupiers taking leased and owner-occupied office space, which was carried out during the period of April to November 2008. The survey focused on actual moves made within the previous two years, or moves that were imminent during 2006-2008. The research suggests that although there is an emerging and increasing demand for sustainable offices in the UK, other factors such as location and availability of stock continue to remain more important than sustainability in determining occupiers' final choice of office. Occupiers who moved to a Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method (BREEAM)-rated building, and were in business sectors with strong environmental and corporate responsibility policies, placed more emphasis on sustainability than other groups in the final choice of office, but location and availability remained paramount.

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to explore the reasons behind the apparent reluctance of UK residential developers to embrace microgeneration technology and adopt it large-scale across their developments despite consumer demand for post-construction microgeneration technologies. This paper explores residential developers" attitudes towards these technologies, their perceptions of drivers and barriers to sustainability, supply and demand issues and perceptions of the potential contribution that microgeneration technologies could make towards sustainable construction across the UK. Design/methodological/approach - This paper reports on the findings from 12 telephone interviews with UK residential developers which were carried out in May 2007. Findings - The main driver towards sustainability was legislation. The most favoured microgeneration technology amongst developers was solar thermal, as it was perceived to be the most established microgeneration technology. Barriers towards adopting this technology were the initial cost to developers, the initial costs to occupiers, long payback periods, and the current market immaturity, reliability and liability of microgeneration products. Research limitations/implications - This represents a snapshot of developers views in 2007 and due to technological improvements, policy and changes to the economy opinions may have changed. Practical implications - The results suggest that unless there are significant improvements in efficiency, reliability, reductions in purchase costs and, guarantees that they will be free from liability when things go wrong, developers will struggle to achieve the requirements of the code for sustainable homes Level Six -œzero carbon- rating in 2016. Originality/value - The study addresses microgeneration from the house-builders" perspective.

This paper discusses the findings from a UK study to determine the likely impact of a wind farm on house prices using a hedonic pricing model. The Government's commitment to wind power has resulted in a massive increase in the number of wind farms sited in the UK. This has led to concerns that their visual and aural presence could have a negative impact on proximate house prices. This paper presents an analysis of 201sales transactions from houses situated within half a mile of a 16 turbine wind farm in Cornwall, UK. Whilst no causal link was established between the presence of the wind farm and house price, there was some evidence to suggest that both noise and flicker from the turbine blades could blight certain property and that the view of countryside enjoyed by the occupier had some value which may be affected by a wind farm.

This paper discusses the findings from a UK study to determine the likely impact of a wind farm on house prices using a hedonic pricing model. The Government's commitment to wind power has resulted in a massive increase in the number of wind farms sited in the UK. This has led to concerns that their visual and aural presence could have a negative impact on proximate house prices. This paper presents an analysis of 201 sales transactions from houses situated within half a mile of a 16 turbine wind farm in Cornwall, UK. Whilst no causal link was established between the presence of the wind farm and house price, there was some evidence to suggest that both noise and flicker from the turbine blades could blight certain property and that the view of countryside enjoyed by the occupier had some value which may be affected by a wind farm.

The effect of electricity distribution equipment, in particular high-voltage overhead transmission lines (HVOTLs), on the value of residential property in England remains relatively unexplored due, in part, to the lack of available transaction data for analysis. This paper compares the results of two UK studies undertaken by the authors. The first is a national survey of property valuers' perceptions (Chartered Surveyors and members of the National Association of Estate Agents) of the presence of distribution equipment in close proximity to residential property. The results from this study are then compared with an analysis of transaction data from a case study in Scotland. This paper presents the initial findings from these studies.