I know I personally didn't buy a home for my family that had power lines running too close to the house. I thought they were ugly and I worried about resale and my kids. So yes I think it limits the number of people willing to buy the home which ultimately effects the sales price.

You know what happens to people who live under the power lines! It is certainly a deterant for some home buyers.

Cynthia,
As most of the responses state, you are limiting the potential buyers pool, which in turn affects the price. With that said use it to your advantage to negotiate a good deal. Now is the time to do it. Work with your realtor or call me at 877-Lee-Sells to determine the fair market value. Review the comps and then deduct maybe another 5% and make your offer. If you buy it right you could always seel it at market value and make money. You make your money buying not selling! If you happen to sell in a low inventory market the negative affect will disappear and you will make money on the buy and sell. Good Luck!
Lee Ginsburg http://www.leesellsmore.com

Hi Cynthia,

I agree with the majority of the responses. Yes, power lines and poles do affect the price of the property. Many buyers will have concern causing them not to write and offer.

If it isn't of concern to you though there may be a great potential to negotiate to get a great deal. Over time, I would imagine that most cities will eventually go all underground wiring (more appealing, higher house values/taxes, less maintenance, more safe, etc.). So maybe 10, 20, 30, etc. years down the line those cables won't be there anymore. Check with the city to see if they have future plans of underground wiring.


Brendan Aiello
(650) 403-6262
http://www.BrendanAiello.com

Hi Cynthia, power lines (and cell towers) will take a percentage of possible buyers out of the picture, reducing the demand for the home. Whether it be due to "urban legend" or not, in my opinion you should avoid buying next to power lines as I believe most would agree there is generally a negative association with them. Sometimes buying a home is not necessarily based on finding the "best house", but more about finding the home with the "least negatives."

Best, Steve

Cynthia,
Anything that is a negative will affect the value of a home. The question is how much of a negative. How intrusive is the power line? I just sold my personal home with the company's power line structure running right beside the house. Because of our states' policy, no one can build within a certain distance on either side of these lines. So, in a neighborhood of very small lots, this 'negative' actually was a plus or at least not a negative. My house had more distance between it and the neighbor's. This, of course, is definitely not true in most cases, but you need to assess just how much these lines intrude on the property and the view. If you hate it, the next buyer probably will too. However, you might be able to use this as a means of adjusting the sales price which would also help you when you sell the property, because you would have less invested in the property. Get an appraisers opinion about how this affects the value in your area. Good Luck, Debi Bobo

Hello Cynthia and thanks for your question.

The mandate to drop power lines underground did not occur for most cities until well into the early 1980s, so older homes or homes abutting older housing projects will see some power lines above ground. If these are simply the power lines leading from the pole to the home, then, for most homebuyers, there is not any concern about the lines which usually supply electricity and telephone to the property. However, if the lines to which you are referring are the high power lines or a series or high power lines leading to an electrical substation or drop/vault, then the proliferation of large shielded black lines at the back or side of a home can and often does create concerns for homeowners and home buyers.

The concern over power lines began when medical reports started linking electromagnetic fields or EMFs with certain cancers--specifically, leukemia and brain tumors. Several tests completed afterward in other countries could not find any link between EMFs and cancer, and PG&E has repeatedly assured the public that every precaution is taken to safeguard public health, but the question pops up all the time when I'm showing houses. Personally, the EMF generated by one's cell phone often exceeds the ambient EMFs near most power lines in the backyard, so, there are many other sources of EMFs that should and could generate more concern.

Talk with your real estate agent about your concerns generated by the electrical lines, and check out PG&E's website at http://www.pge.com for helpful FAQs about EMFs and health concerns. There is also helpful information on http://www.webmd.com that will provide you with the suspected list of health hazards for prolonged exposure to high levels of EMFs.

Good luck and happy house hunting!

Sincerely,
Grace Morioka, SRES, e-Pro
Area Pro Realty
Sunnyvale, CA
email: GraceAreaProReatly@att.net

Hi Cynthia,
With all due respect to Chads response, I would offer a caveat...you are asking the question because you have some concerns yourself. One thing I tell buyers I represent is that what they find appealing in a home, future buyers will probably feel the same way, and what they find undesirable, it is likely that future buyers will agree. So, how do you fell about it? I was showing a home recently and there was a power line tower very visible in the back yard...stopped the buyers in their tracks. You've seen it and I have not....I would say it has at least an influence on desirability and thus likely has some influence on value....in a marketplace with limited inventory the financial influence is likely minimal. When inventory is abundant buyers have more choices and it would have a greater influence.
Best Wishes,
Russ Boyd, Broker Associate
Intero Real Estate Services
650 235 7877

This is very common in Southern California and typically does not reduce the property value unless it is blocking a view or is very imposing in some way. Keep in mind that the power company will have an easement on the title of the property which allows them access to the power lines. This means that you can't build on that part of the property. Unless there is a pole on the property the power company will rarely if ever need access to the property. Even if there is a pole access is typically very rare.
I have worked in the Real Estate industry for 16 years and have a lot of experience buying and selling homes. Power lines have only been a issue for my buyer once and that was when the pole was directly blocking an ocean view. I don't think this should keep you from buying the home you want, good luck.