It is increasingly common for real estate advertisements to tout the proximity of homes and subdivisions to trails.   The following are excerpts from studies that provide further evidence of the benefits of trails to property values.

_  The 2004 American Community Survey (sponsored by the National Association of Realtors and Smart Growth America) found that “sidewalks and places to take walks” are the 3rd most important factor in deciding where to live.

_  Trails ranked as the second most important community amenity out of a list of 18 choices in a 2002 survey of recent home buyers sponsored by the National Association of Realtors and the National Association of Home Builders.

_  A 2001 survey of Omaha’s recreational trails found that 81% of respondents felt the trail’s proximity would have a positive effect or no effect on the ease of sale of their homes.  64% of respondents indicated that the trail positively influenced their decision to purchase their home.

_  Developers of a housing development in Apex, North Carolina added $5,000 to the price of 40 homes adjacent to the regional greenway.  Those homes were still the first to sell, reported a 1999 Rails-to-Trails article.

_  A 1998 study of property values along the Mountain Bay Trail in Brown County, Wisconsin shows that lots adjacent to the trail sold faster and for an average of 9 percent more than similar properties not located next to the trail.

_  A 1987 study of the Burke-Gilman Trail in Seattle found that property near the trail (not adjacent to), was significantly easier to sell and sold for an average of six percent more as a result of its proximity to the trail.

_  Colorado State Parks conducted a study in the Denver area and found that 73% of real estate agents thought property would sell faster and for more money when adjacent to or within one block of a trail.