If you were buying a house, would it make a difference? 80 vs >90 AFUE

[mixer440]

--mid 90s house currently with original 80% Gas Furnace and about 3.0 Heat Pump
--located in the northwest with moderate temps (1 month of below freezing at night/2 months of above 90 during the day)
--Thinking about upgrading and not having any idea how long we'll be around, but probably 5 minimum years.
--Realizing that the money put into a new system .......... I'll never see again

.....but...........


If you walked into a house and the selling agent said: "Hey this house has a 95% AFUE furnace and a decent HP, both around 5 to 10 years old".


Would that make a difference to you as a buyer (over an 80% with the same age) ?

[Joehvac25]

I think buyers are more concerned with shiny objects and nice floors, hvac only gets attention when it's broke. You may get an odd ball that cares.

[mixer440]

True. But I bet if a professional like yourself were to walk in, you'd be asking the questions. Right ? I suppose the gals would be looking at the kitchen cabinets-----

[Joehvac25]

I would be looking at the hvac for sure but I think as long as you have a good working system that's what counts.

[NY2GA01]

I think buyers are more concerned with shiny objects and nice floors, hvac only gets attention when it's broke. You may get an odd ball that cares.

They are also more worried about Kitchens, counter tops, bathrooms than HVAC needs. Hell, most people have no idea what name brand their HVAC units are.

True. But I bet if a professional like yourself were to walk in, you'd be asking the questions. Right ? I suppose the gals would be looking at the kitchen cabinets-----

No, I could care less about they system because I can always update my system. I also can take retail replacement cost off the asking price if their is issues with it.

I bought a house from the builder 6 years ago that had an Aqua-Therm system. I got sick of the 200.00 power bill, and no hot water in the winter, so I went to my supply house and got a 16 seer unit, and a 95% gas furnace and installed myself, got a rebate from the power company, and gas company, and enjoy my monthly savings month over month.

[mixer440]

Well put "NY2GA01"---especially true for the general populace. I think we all agree on that.

[ammoniadog]

With the new, upcoming ban on 80%'ers in most of the country, I would want to make sure that if it does have an 80% furnace, that it would be relatively easy to replace it with a 90%'er in the future if needed. If the old furnace is located in an unconditioned space (i.e.. attic) or in an area where it would be difficult to properly run new venting and fresh air pipes to it, the new regulations will cause problems.

[NY2GA01]

Well put "NY2GA01"---especially true for the general populace. I think we all agree on that.

But, I'm asking the professionals in this forum if it would matter to them.

I guess I am not a prefessional..LMAO... He's too much.

[hvacvegas]

Well put "NY2GA01"---especially true for the general populace. I think we all agree on that.

But, I'm asking the professionals in this forum if it would matter to them.

Totally.

I recently bought a house. I was LOOKING for houses with broken furnaces, williamsons, pieces of crap. If I found a gravity furnace I would fall on the ground praising God.

The more hvac work, the better. That way they have to take more off the price, force a big ammount off the price and put it in for almost nothing.

Oh, yes. I am a professional by the way.......

I guess NY2GA isn't.

XD

[mixer440]

Yes, you are NY2GA01 Sorry about that. I didn't see your entire reply.

[precision hvac]

I'd be looking at the installation.
90's are more expensive to repair & headaches if poorly installed & out of warranty.
I'd rather have a quality installed 80% than a poorly installed 95%
Mid 90's install isn't dead yet.

[mixer440]

I'd be looking at the installation.
90's are more expensive to repair & headaches if poorly installed & out of warranty.
I'd rather have a quality installed 80% than a poorly installed 95%
Mid 90's install isn't dead yet.

Thanks.
Boy isn't that the truth ! Lucky for me all my dealers are top notch----well at least by the points I've gleaned from the posts here.

The more hvac work, the better. That way they have to take more off the price

Now that is what I've should have done when I bought the house. Instead the original owner was trying to sell me the appliances for almost full retail. The horror of it all.


Back to topic though. This whole AFUE choice has me baffled. To me, I consider it a loss in terms of money anyway. The idea of "getting my money back" is absurd. It even seems that annual maintenance is going to be more on a high efficiency model (see my other post). So, I'm looking for other reasons to go with the higher efficiency.

That's why I wondered about the resale value of a +90 over an 80.

Thanks for the comments.

[beenthere]

Mild weather with a dual fuel. I wouldn't worry that the furnace is only an 80%er.