Study: Silence Raises Property Values

A study out of Florida reveals that homes near new sound barriers that block out freeway noise saw a 6.8 percent price increase after the walls were built, reports Lisa Ward in the Wall Street Journal.

Researchers found that “The barrier’s effect on property values declined with distance, the researchers found. They observed price increases of about 3.9% for homes located 100 to 200 meters from a newly constructed sound barrier, 3.1% for homes located 200 to 300 meters from a barrier and 2.8% for homes 300 to 400 meters from a barrier.”

The study shows that buyers are willing to pay more for homes in quieter areas, adding to a growing body of research on the measurable health and economic impacts of urban noise. 

The authors of the study estimate that traffic noise reduces property values by about $110 billion nationally. “Lower-income homeowners often bear the brunt of this, the researchers say, because their neighborhoods tend to be most affected by things like pollution, crime and traffic noise.”