As the costs associated with sustainable building decrease, it becomes easier, and more profitable, to be green. Green building has become especially popular in Denver which has a number of local sustainable initiatives, including Greenprint Denver. For more local information, check out the city of Denver’s Environmental Sustainability page.

3 Benefits to Building Green:

• Increased Market Appeal. Sustainable buildings are more competitive against traditional facilities because they can attract more tenants. This also makes them more appealing to other buyers and investors.
• Reduced health concerns. Sustainable building practices employ techniques which tend to minimize health hazards, thereby decreasing the chances of health-related lawsuits.
• Added financial incentives. Sustainable construction and renovation projects, both with and without LEED-certification, may qualify for a variety of tax rebates and credits as well as zoning allowances and other incentives on local, regional and national levels.

Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) has nine different rating systems, many of which apply to commercial real estate construction, including LEED for: New Construction, Core and Shell, Commercial Interiors, Retail: New Construction and Major Renovation, Retail: Commercial Interiors, and Existing Buildings: Operations and Maintenance. LEED certifications are assigned based on a project’s score out of a possible 100 points. Points are given based on the project’s sustainability sites, water efficiency, energy and atmosphere, materials and resources, indoor environmental quality, innovation in design, and regional priority. There are four levels of certification: certified (40-49 points), silver (50-59 points), gold (60-79 points), and platinum (80+ points).

5 Ways to Build Green:

• Identify opportunities for recycling. If you’re working with a previously developed property, this can include finding ways to update or reuse as much of the existing structure as possible. With an undeveloped property, consider using recycled building materials.
• Incorporate as much natural light as possible. Bringing more natural light into your building not only reduces electricity costs, it can also create a more inviting atmosphere for employees or tenants. A daylight dimming system can be used to supplement natural light as needed.
• Employ a naturalized ventilation system. This will cool the building with outside air whenever possible, which can be especially efficient in climates like Denver.
• Use high-efficiency and other green building elements. These can include: a photovoltaic array to generate a portion of the facility’s energy from sunlight, usually installed on a roof; low-emitting building materials; high-efficiency plumbing and mechanical equipment; and thermally-efficient building skin to improve insulation.
• Plan an efficient landscape design. This should incorporate native plants as well as minimize storm water runoff.

It is important to decide whether you want to employ green building practices before embarking on a construction project as this will affect not only the building materials used but also the policies that are put into place by your construction company. Knowing you want to go green ahead of time will also help you estimate your upfront costs when you are applying for loans, whether they are private or traditional Some developers are discovering that working with a Colorado hard money lender like Montegra will enable them to find the necessary funds for renovation costs or in certain instances to get a bridge loan for the purchase of the property.

This blog was written by Bob Amter, President of Montegra Capital Resources, LTD., a Colorado hard money lender.  [google_authorship] has been in the private capital lending business for 41 consecutive years.