Does green construction cost more?
Green design almost always costs more up-front, though not a lot more. The Economist magazine says it costs 3-5% more, in our experience it’s more like 10-15% more. One of the reasons to design green is to minimize those up-front costs. As an example, if you super-insulate your house and place your windows to take advantage of passive solar heating, you will be able to significantly reduce the size (and cost) of your mechanical system. Green products are often more durable than non-green products. You may pay more for them at the time of purchase, but they will last longer and require little maintenance. For instance, a green product we have recently used on several projects is EcoStar roofing. These are rubber roofing shingles that look remarkably like slate. They are made from recycled tires and have a 50 year warranty. They cost about twice as much as an asphalt shingle roof, and last about twice as long. And they cost about half as much as slate.
