Some things, when near to a home, can have a negative effect on value. What about gas stations? The fumes, traffic and noise would probably make a home less desirable if the home is too close. But by how much, and can the data show this?
Homes near gas stations are worth 30%-50% less
We looked at 430,000 historical sales in the Dallas-Fort Worth area. Homes near gas stations sold for $100,000 less than those at least a mile away. Homes within a tenth of a mile of a gas station (approx. 500 feet) sold for a median price of only $230,000, compared to $330,000 for those a mile away, a difference of 30%. Homes 1.5 miles away sold for a median price of $345,000, raising the gap to 50%.
Focusing specifically on suburban counties (Collin and Denton) and homes over $400k in value, the effect is still there. Homes closest to gas stations had a median sales price of $446,000, vs $520,000 for homes a mile away, a difference of $74,000, or at least 15%. Homes a mile and a half away sold for $550,000, raising the gap to $104,000, or 19%.
Gas stations cut appreciation in half
The last few years have seen massive appreciation in the DFW area. But did homes near gas stations enjoy this as well?
Homes near a gas station appreciated only half as fast as those further away, based on our analysis of home re-sales over the last five years. Homes within 800 feet of a gas station (0.15 miles) appreciated only 11.9% during two years of ownership, compared to 20-22% for homes further away, over the same two years.
Appreciation seems relatively unaffected by distance to a gas station until you are within 800 feet (0.15) mile, when it drops sharply.
Methodology notes
For the average closing price vs gas station distance analysis, we looked at a total of 433,000 historical sales in the D-FW since January 2017 and calculated the distance of each to a gas station. For the appreciation analysis, we looked at homes that were bought and then re-sold two years later, between 2017 and 2021, across the DFW area. There were 11,000 such homes. Of these, 126 were sold for at least $300,000 and were within 0.15 miles of a gas station (roughly a sixth of a mile).
