Willingness to pay for energy-saving measures in residential buildings

Abstract

This paper uses a choice experiment to evaluate the consumers' willingness to pay for energy-saving measures in Switzerland's residential buildings. These measures include air renewal (ventilation) systems and insulation of windows and facades. Two groups of respondents consisting respectively of 163 apartment tenants and 142 house owners were asked to choose between their housing status quo and each one of the several hypothetical situations with different attributes and prices. The estimation method is based on a fixed-effects logit model. The results suggest that the benefits of the energy-saving attributes are significantly valued by the consumers. These benefits include both individual energy savings and environmental benefits as well as comfort benefits namely, thermal comfort, air quality and noise protection.