Buyer appetite for homes capable of generating their own energy has risen sharply, according to data from Rightmove, which found that 63% of movers now say they would prefer a property that produces most or all of its own power. The portal links this shift to a combination of volatile energy prices and recent summer heatwaves, two forces that have pushed household running costs and comfort to the top of buyers' priority lists in a way that was far less pronounced a decade ago.
For UK property investors, this is more than a passing lifestyle preference. It signals a structural change in what constitutes a desirable asset. Where once buyers assessed a property primarily on location, size and transport links, energy generation capability is now entering the core decision-making criteria alongside those traditional factors. Landlords and developers who treat solar panels, battery storage or other energy-generating features as optional extras risk misreading where buyer and tenant expectations are heading.
Crucially, Rightmove's findings also highlight a market imbalance: energy-efficient features remain concentrated in higher-priced properties. This creates a two-tier dynamic. At the top end of the market, energy-generating homes are becoming a differentiator that commands buyer attention, reinforcing the premium status of well-specified properties in areas such as Surrey and parts of London. Further down the price spectrum, however, first-time buyers and those in more affordable segments of cities like Liverpool, Newcastle or Birmingham may find themselves largely locked out of homes with these features, simply because the stock that exists at lower price points has not yet been retrofitted or built to the same standard.
This divide has clear implications for different participants in the market. Buy-to-let landlords operating in mid-market and affordable segments should take note that tenant demand for energy-generating homes is likely to keep rising, particularly as energy price volatility continues to feature in household budgeting decisions. Landlords who invest now in retrofitting properties with energy-generating capability may be better positioned to command rental premiums and reduce void periods, even if such properties currently sit outside the most expensive band of stock that Rightmove identifies as leading on this front.
Developers face a more immediate strategic question. If 63% of movers are expressing a preference for energy-generating homes, housebuilders in growth markets such as Manchester and Leeds have a clear signal to incorporate these features into new-build specifications rather than treating them as premium add-ons. Commercial investors, too, should watch this trend closely, since shifting buyer psychology around energy resilience in the residential market often foreshadows similar expectations emerging in commercial and mixed-use developments, particularly around energy costs for occupiers.
Looking ahead to the next six to twelve months, PropertyNews analysis suggests this preference is unlikely to fade, given that the underlying drivers, energy price volatility and increasingly extreme summer weather, show no sign of reversing. What will be worth monitoring is whether the current concentration of energy-generating features in higher-priced properties starts to spread into the mainstream market, or whether it hardens into a lasting divide between premium and standard housing stock. Either outcome carries consequences: a broadening of supply would benefit buyers and renters across price points, while a persistent divide would further entrench energy costs as a marker of housing inequality.
The clearest conclusion from Rightmove's findings is that energy generation capability has moved from a niche consideration to a mainstream buyer priority, and the market has not yet caught up. Investors, landlords and developers who move early to close that gap, particularly in mid-market and affordable segments, stand to capture demand that the current concentration of features in premium stock leaves unmet.
