diff --git a/src/standard/configure.html b/src/standard/configure.html
index 91a1319ce1..404a21a60b 100644
--- a/src/standard/configure.html
+++ b/src/standard/configure.html
@@ -46,7 +46,7 @@
   // When true, `this.properties` is bad juju due to obsolete `properties`
   // accessors on instances of HTMLElement
   var avoidInstanceProperties =
-    Boolean(Object.getOwnPropertyDescriptor(document.body, 'properties'));
+    Boolean(Object.getOwnPropertyDescriptor(document.documentElement, 'properties'));
 
   Polymer.Base._addFeature({