Larry reports that the average payback of a green building over its lifetime is 20 percent.
"Once your building is operational, you start saving money," she says. "Add in the health and productivity benefits for the building's occupants, and the benefits for the environment, and it's clear that green building makes both economic and environmental sense."
Easy Being Green
The cost considerations involved in going green may become less of an issue when you think about how living green can improve your health and level of comfort.
"How much is your life and your health worth?" asks Draiman.
"A green building is going to be a substantially more enjoyable place to live in terms of fresh air, light, indoor air quality," Jay maintains. "People love green buildings."
Draiman tells the story of a young woman with asthma who couldn't sleep through the night until she moved to Chicago high rise in Chicago's Lincoln Park area, the nation's first green residential high-rise building.
"She hasn't had any problems since then," he says. "They have increased ventilation and a lot of filtration and were very, very careful in the materials that they chose for the building. So you have a direct correlation between a green building and improved health care."
Battery Park City is one neighborhood that "leads" the way in "LEED" standards. The Visionaire, which uses an intricate water filtration system for toilets, has a green roof and gets 35 percent of its electricity from renewable energy sources, is the only residential building in the country to earn the LEED platinum rating. The previously mentioned Solaire, located at 20 River Terrace was the first gold-certified building in the country. Lakeshore Green, a 24-story residential tower at North Avenue, is also rated gold.
River north is a gold-certified building that uses a geothermal well to heat and cool the common areas, and features solar panels, micro turbines and insulated windows. The solar panels, known as photovoltaic panels, will produce electricity for the building. These panels will benefit River north residents by producing free electricity after the initial investment cost, connecting to the utility grid allowing excess energy to be sold back to local utilities, increasing grid reliability by preventing blackouts during peak demand hours and requiring little maintenance and a lifetime of 30-plus years.
Outside of Battery Park City, The Helena, at 601 West 57th Street, meets the gold standard and touts that 50 percent of the building's purchased energy is generated by wind power. E7 project, a boutique condo in Williamsburg uses a geothermal system to heat and cool the building and is aiming for silver LEED status. Greenbelt, a warehouse in Williamsburg being converted into silver LEED certified apartments, was built using salvaged materials from the warehouse and uses solar panels to power some of the building. Dozens of other projects around the city are also aiming for LEED certification.
Does Going Green Put You in the Black?
As a real estate broker, Jay estimates that apartments in green buildings will fetch 10 percent more in the market than non-green apartments.
"LEED certified buildings, especially those that are platinum, are dramatically different buildings than non-LEED certified buildings. It's certainly not apples to apples," he says.
"Sustainable real estate properties lease more rapidly than conventional buildings," Larry comments. "And they command higher occupancy and rental rates."
Additionally, LEED certified buildings may qualify for tax rebates, zoning allowances and other incentives. These incentives differ by state and city; you can check out the USGBC website to view a listing of them.
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