A recent home buyer survey finds a high rate of customer satisfaction among those who have purchased green homes or remodeled their home green — and that 63 percent of buyers are motivated by the lower operating and maintenance costs that come with energy and resource efficient green homes.

NAHB and McGraw-Hill Construction, which conducted the research, released preliminary results of the findings at the 9th Annual National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) National Green Building Conference in St. Louis. It represents the first time the true green home market has been sized, screening out green homeowners from a representative panel of U.S. homeowners.

Homeowners are syaing they are extremely happy with their investments, with 85 percent saying they are more satisfied with their new green homes than with their previous, more traditionally built homes.

Officials are happy that this new research quantifies this customer satisfaction, but are not overly surprised. The NAHB and its members have been leaders in the voluntary movement to increase the efficiency and quality of homes in America. This suggests that “green home” market share wil continue to grow.”

The new survey also backs up recent finding by the NAHB Economics staff that interest in green remodeling continues to grow: About 40 percent of those who have recently completed home remodeling or renovation work in their homes reported that they used green products or materials, the McGraw-Hill Construction research found.

Last year it was estimated that 2 percent — or $7.4 billion — of the residential construction market contained green building elements, such as energy efficient windows. According to this new research, 0.3 percent of all existing United States homes are truly green, constructed using several different green building design features and products, a market sized at approximately $2 billion.

Officials said it’s interesting that people are really starting to commit to building green homes, moving away from just adding energy efficient appliances. It’s still a small number, but home builders and remodelers are already getting it when it comes to the value of green homes, and it appears homeowners are too.

The research also found that:

— The new green homeowner is affluent and well educated, in his/her mid
forties and married, and also more likely to be from the Southern or
Western states. Women are also more likely to be green homeowners.

— 63 percent report lower operating and maintenance costs as the key
motivation behind buying a green home. Additionally, nearly 50
percent said they are motivated by environmental concerns and their
family’s health.

— More than 60 percent of those surveyed say that consumer awareness,
additional costs and the limited availability of homes are obstacles
to green homes gaining a bigger market share. However, when looking
at the “biggest” obstacles, green homeowners view education as the
biggest hurdle to overcome.