Lower Costs, More Benefits: Green Building Market is Growing Up

The World Green Building Council (WGBC) released a report this month that found the cost of constructing a green building is typically on par with a conventional one. 

“The Business Case for Green Building: A Review of the Costs and Benefits for Developers, Investors and Occupants” analyzed the cost and outcomes of buildings around the world. Not only did the report conclude that the price of the majority of green buildings range from only zero to four percent more than a standard building, but that oftentimes the costs are even lower (up to .4 percent lower).

Why does the cost of green buildings continue to drop?

In short: they’re growing up. A strong, maturing market for green building construction has led to competitive innovation, which has helped lower prices while maintaining or even improving performance compared to past years. This maturity also extends back to the supply chain, which is more experienced and efficient with sourcing and distributing green building materials.

And cost is just part of the good news. The study also found that green buildings enjoy higher sale premiums, ranging from zero to 30 percent more compared with conventional buildings in the same submarket. They also have much lower operating costs than a conventional building. Indeed, the WGBC found that even one technology, such as more efficient plumbing, can save nearly 40 percent of water used. This adds directly to a company’s bottom line. 

At Trane, our solutions ensure that a green building is a high performing one throughout its life, providing a safe, comfortable and efficient environment for occupants. Our innovations create these high performance buildings by using a unique methodology that combines financial, operating and energy analysis with specialized service offers and available financing. By meeting specific standards for energy and water use, system reliability and uptime, environmental compliance, occupant comfort and safety, and more, high performance buildings will continue to lead the green building sector with efficient construction costs, optimized operations and higher sale premiums.