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The Official Website of BUILT GREEN Washington

BUILT GREEN Washington is a cooperative of Washington’s regional green home building programs. We’re here to help home builders and home buyers get the information needed to build and buy green!

Green building is simple and smart. Reducing the environmental impact of home construction, produces healthier homes that operate much more efficiently, save energy, water, resources — and money, too. Green building is an investment in our future, creating communities and regions that are better places to live today and tomorrow.

To take advantage of those benefits, building green does require good planning and the use of sustainable building materials. We’re here to point you to those resources. General strategies for green building include:

All types of homes, including multifamily townhomes, can be built sustainably. +enlarge

Developing your site to preserve natural water flow;

Reducing construction waste; and

Designing buildings and using equipment and materials that support good indoor air quality and the efficient use of natural resources and energy.

What is a Green Building Program?

Just as there are many shades of green, there’s a range of what "green" means to the construction industry. Each green building program defines green for both the professional using it and the home buyer seeking a green home. At its core, a green home building program is a set of building techniques that, when selected and combined, will create a green building.

Most BUILT GREEN programs in Washington use a Checklist that offers builders a menu of green building strategies with point values attributed to them. Programs award a BUILT GREEN rating (one to five Stars) to a home based on the number of points the builder achieves. Programs do vary, so check with your local program for details.

Check listings for events in your area, such as green homes tours, to learn more. +enlarge

Partnerships Make Building Green Possible

Successful green buildings have been produced because of successful partnerships. People from the building industry, state and local government, product manufacturers and suppliers, utilities, lenders, and non-profit groups have all worked together to make Washington a leader in building a sustainable future. Join us!