IRVINE, CA—House hunters are increasingly demanding transparency into the true cost of owning or renting a home, which includes utility costs for those properties, UtilityScore's founder and CEO Brian Gitt tells GlobeSt.com. The national provider of utility data recently signed a data-licensing agreement with ATTOM Data Solutions, making the latter firm the exclusive bulk data provider of UtilityScore data.

This nationwide data, now available in the ATTOM Data Warehouse, includes annual and monthly electric bills, natural gas bills, and water/sewer bills, along with neighborhood-level utility costs.

We spoke exclusively with Gitt about the importance of utility costs in house hunters' home-buying decisions and trends in utility costs.

GlobeSt.com: Are utility costs becoming more important to home buyers as a factor they consider before buying?

Gitt: Utility costs are 25% of housing expense and often more expensive than property taxes and insurance combined in most of the US. House hunters are increasingly demanding transparency into the true cost of owning or renting. The increase in lifestyle metrics available in real estate and rental listings—from walkability to transit accessibility to rooftop-solar potential—demonstrates that consumers are influenced by these previously hidden factors as these data become more widespread. And, unlike transit or solar, utility bills impact every single home in the US. As utility costs continue to rise, the importance of understanding these costs while house hunting is essential to determine affordability.

ATTOM Data Solutions will conduct an analysis of homebuyer behavior in the future to better quantify the importance of utility costs to house hunters.

GlobeSt.com: Which utility costs are increasing and which are decreasing on the whole?

Gitt: Decades of deferred maintenance on aging utility infrastructure and increased labor costs will continue to drive energy and water costs higher. UtilityScore's analysis of thousands of utility providers across the US reveals that water and sewer prices are consistently increasing in real dollars, while electricity and natural gas prices are more volatile. In the last 12 months, water rates have increased about 8%, and sewer rates have increased about 5% across the US. In some states (including California, Michigan and South Carolina, among others), residential retail prices of electricity have increased since last year.

GlobeSt.com: How are utility companies addressing cost control in an effort to better serve customers?

Gitt: Some utility companies offer a few cost-control options to serve their customers, including time-of-use electricity rate schedules, competition though flexible-rate options in deregulated energy markets, no-cost tips for reducing their energy and water use and rebates and incentives for installing energy-efficient and water-efficient appliances and fixtures. However, in all, the cost of maintaining our nation's aging utility infrastructure is increasing, while at the same time Americans continue to reduce their energy and water use. As these unavoidable maintenance costs go up, consumers need to cover those expenses in their utility rates and fees. While rebates and incentives help individual households offset rising utility costs, in aggregate, homeowners will be paying more over time.

GlobeSt.com: What else should our readers know about this topic?

Gitt: UtilityScore not only helps house hunters understand the true cost of ownership before they buy, but also helps homeowners identify the best home improvements that save money on energy and water bills.

IRVINE, CA—House hunters are increasingly demanding transparency into the true cost of owning or renting a home, which includes utility costs for those properties, UtilityScore's founder and CEO Brian Gitt tells GlobeSt.com. The national provider of utility data recently signed a data-licensing agreement with ATTOM Data Solutions, making the latter firm the exclusive bulk data provider of UtilityScore data.

This nationwide data, now available in the ATTOM Data Warehouse, includes annual and monthly electric bills, natural gas bills, and water/sewer bills, along with neighborhood-level utility costs.

We spoke exclusively with Gitt about the importance of utility costs in house hunters' home-buying decisions and trends in utility costs.

GlobeSt.com: Are utility costs becoming more important to home buyers as a factor they consider before buying?

Gitt: Utility costs are 25% of housing expense and often more expensive than property taxes and insurance combined in most of the US. House hunters are increasingly demanding transparency into the true cost of owning or renting. The increase in lifestyle metrics available in real estate and rental listings—from walkability to transit accessibility to rooftop-solar potential—demonstrates that consumers are influenced by these previously hidden factors as these data become more widespread. And, unlike transit or solar, utility bills impact every single home in the US. As utility costs continue to rise, the importance of understanding these costs while house hunting is essential to determine affordability.

ATTOM Data Solutions will conduct an analysis of homebuyer behavior in the future to better quantify the importance of utility costs to house hunters.

GlobeSt.com: Which utility costs are increasing and which are decreasing on the whole?

Gitt: Decades of deferred maintenance on aging utility infrastructure and increased labor costs will continue to drive energy and water costs higher. UtilityScore's analysis of thousands of utility providers across the US reveals that water and sewer prices are consistently increasing in real dollars, while electricity and natural gas prices are more volatile. In the last 12 months, water rates have increased about 8%, and sewer rates have increased about 5% across the US. In some states (including California, Michigan and South Carolina, among others), residential retail prices of electricity have increased since last year.

GlobeSt.com: How are utility companies addressing cost control in an effort to better serve customers?

Gitt: Some utility companies offer a few cost-control options to serve their customers, including time-of-use electricity rate schedules, competition though flexible-rate options in deregulated energy markets, no-cost tips for reducing their energy and water use and rebates and incentives for installing energy-efficient and water-efficient appliances and fixtures. However, in all, the cost of maintaining our nation's aging utility infrastructure is increasing, while at the same time Americans continue to reduce their energy and water use. As these unavoidable maintenance costs go up, consumers need to cover those expenses in their utility rates and fees. While rebates and incentives help individual households offset rising utility costs, in aggregate, homeowners will be paying more over time.

GlobeSt.com: What else should our readers know about this topic?

Gitt: UtilityScore not only helps house hunters understand the true cost of ownership before they buy, but also helps homeowners identify the best home improvements that save money on energy and water bills.