Go Green – The new added value to your investment?  Costa Rica has embraced an era of building green with concrete awareness of what it entails. This is consistent with market demand around the world, driven by cost-effectiveness triggers as well as ethical and branding/public relations factors. Yet, the bottom line benefits may not always be obvious or simple and straightforward to assess.

Proper design is the key
to reaping the benefits of
cost effectiveness and savings.

However when enthusiastic investors, buyers and clients are at the prospect of retrofitting an existing home or building anew, many wonder if the costs of building green will translate into future savings. Can there really be a return on investment, and if so, enough to be worth the expense? Or is this all part of the new-age hype about living more sustainably and being kinder to the planet?

Since it may not be easy finding answers to these questions on your own, seeking qualified advice and guidance on the return-on-investment (ROI) aspects of green building can be very worthwhile. Whether your green building project is a home, retail or office space, hospitality venue, healthcare facility or commercial building, an accredited professional can help you evaluate the options in terms of objectives and benefits.

However simple or multi-faceted your sustainability-driven intentions, proper design is the key to reaping the benefits of cost-effectiveness and savings. Bear in mind that retrofitting an existing building can be more expensive in terms of “detour” measures than incorporating well-designed systems conceived from the get-go.

Building green is seldom a matter of one element providing energy efficiency or better air quality control. It’s about many factors. Adding a few improvements here and there can help, and they need not be complicated or expensive to be cost-effective. The key is to ensure these features are well thought out and integrated.

The most well-established and widely promoted ROI benefits of green building include the following:

1. Energy efficiency: Energy cost savings are by far the most important environmental reason to build green.

2. Water use reduction: Water saving measures are good for the environment as well as your budget.

3. Reduced greenhouse gas emissions: Measures to reduce this cause of environmental harm also have the added benefit of significant long-term cost savings.

4. Lower maintenance costs: This may be the most important bottom line reason to build green. Efficient systems can cut maintenance costs by 20 percent.

5. Higher real estate value: Green technology investment increases the long-term value of new construction units by up to 10.9 percent and 6.9 percent for retrofitted buildings.

6. Rental property values: Tenants are becoming more aware and conscientious about where they rent, wanting to benefit from energy and water-saving efficiencies in properties that measure up to green building and operating standards.

7. Natural resource conservation awareness: Improved health and productivity are motivating more people to build green, even though energy savings remains the most important environmental incentive.