Factors Affecting Cost of Single Family Dwellings in Bryan and College Station, Texas with Emphasis on Curb Appeal

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to ascertain whether curb appeal has any effect on the property value of a single family dwelling. Curb appeal is generally defined as the general attractiveness of a house or other piece of property from the sidewalk, often used by home builders or realtors to evaluate a piece of property. It continues to be used as an indicator of the initial appeal of a property to prospective buyers. For this study, curb appeal has been measured by the level of maintenance of front yard, external features of a house (as viewed from the street side), landscaping, and territorial personalization of the yard. Some known predictors of the property value of a single family dwelling, such as total built-up area, the number of bedrooms and bathrooms, lot size, and location has been included in the statistical model for the study a sample of 112 single family dwellings from twelve neighborhoods in two neighboring towns in Texas, USA. The statistical technique used for data analysis is General Linear Modelling. Results show a statistically significant relationship between curb appeal and property value of single family dwellings in Bryan & College Station, Texas.