Residental LEED Projects Already Surpass Commercial Projects in Total Certifications

I noticed a while back from the USGBC updates that residential certifications were quickly catching up to their commercial counterparts. A USGBC Update from 03.11.10 there are now 5,000 'residential' certifications and 4,890 commercial projects in existence, though there are still slightly more commercial registered projects... amazing growth considering the first LEED-NC system was released over ten years ago while LEED-Homes was only launched in April of 2009...

Comparing LEED residential certifications to commercial projects

USGBC Update from 03.11.10

I think this is great news... at this point everyone in the industry knows about LEED, so the only growth in awareness is going to have to come from the general public. As LEED Homes grows in popularity it only stands to reason that the other systems will gain wider recognition and demand as well. Wider demand means better benefits for certification (in higher lease rates and such), which will then spur increased demand for certification, which means more awareness still, and the glorious feedback loop continues on and on...

Details and More Details

When I first noticed this I shot off a quick email to the USGBC communications department to get some clarity on the distinction between 'residential' and 'commercial' projects. (Before you ask... I got a very timely reply... the fault for the delay in the post is all mine!) Residential projects are comprised of residential units, not necessarily project certifications (e.g. a multifamily building with 8 units earning a single LEED Homes rating counts not once but eight times) certified under traditional LEED for Homes or the LEED for Homes Mid-Rise Pilot systems. Commercial buildings are presumably everything else...

The next question I asked was whether the growth LEED Homes speciality accreditations were outpacing the other systems, but the response from the USGBC was that this is not the case yet...

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

interesting... meanwhile, there are an estimated 15,000-20,000 units that meet passivhaus standards.

rico said...

thanks you toooo mcuh !!