Green buildings: Here are the real costs of going green

As the climate change discourse rages on, in the real estate spaces, a major concern has been the cost of putting up a green development.

For developers whose traditional methods of design and construction have been successful in the past, change is not one of the strategies they seek to employ.

Yet as the effects of climate change become a reality, it is becoming inevitable. International Housing Solutions (IHS) Managing Director Kioi Wambaa, a private equity firm that specialises in sustainable developments, said one of the main misconceptions is that green buildings are expensive.

Yes, they might cost more, he points out, but the initial investment is beneficial in the long term.

“Over the years, things like solar photovoltaic (systems) have significantly come down in pricing. There are more manufacturers, even on the continent. You will find the base items used to green buildings are getting lower (in pricing),” he said.

Wambaa insisted that greening a building goes beyond a bulb that is energy efficient or installing a dual cistern. It starts with the structural designs.

“There are other interventions used that actually make a building green that including orientation of the building, like the window-floor ratio. Those are passive measures that can be used, and they are not necessarily expensive,” he said.

While participating in a panel discussion at the Kenya Affordable Housing Conference 2025 by the Kenya Mortgage Refinance Company (KMRC), Wambaa noted that a green building, from previous developments done by the firm, would cost seven per cent more to put up.

“Over the years, this has significantly reduced,” he said. “In Kenya, we are tracking the cost, design, and I believe towards the end of the year, we will be publishing some data.” But Wambaa insists that buyers should not look at the initial cost of the building, but the long-term investment, insisting that the life cycle of the project is equally important.

“What we can show you in the data we have is, in the buildings we are now doing, people in them are making savings in water and electricity equivalent to one month’s rent in a year,” he said.

“That is very significant for an affordable unit because we believe affordability is not just about buying a low-cost house. The cost of maintaining it is very critical.” National Housing Corporation’s acting General Manager for Technical Services Robert Ambuku said the design is a low-hanging fruit for those seeking to put up green buildings.

“As a corporation, we have been trying as much as possible in collaboration with the State Department for Housing and Urban Development, and other players to optimise our design not only to make it affordable but also green,” he said.

 “The more you optimise on your architectural and structural design, the less material consumption your building uses. And the less material used, the less embodied carbon.”

There is, however, a need for more research and consequently funding for the green building sector. There should also be regulations that speak to the adoption of green building technologies.

He notes this should be beyond the National Building Code adopted early in the year. He observes that the code just encourages green buildings. However, there needs to be a regulation that would mainstream adoption.

Additionally, the government’s incentives would go a long way to catalyse the adoption of innovative ideas and materials. “Sustainable housing is very expensive. It can only be made affordable or economical by the government stepping in. The government can come in either through some tax waivers or subsidies of green products,” he said.

For Unity Homes Senior Sales Partner Laban Tanui, the usage of aluminium formwork, a building technology considered green, has saved the developer in terms of the cost of construction.

“There are fewer reworks and the quality has improved,” he stated. “It has also helped us in cost-cutting. Initially, you could get like 20 people doing the casting, but now to cast four units, you only need four people. We are also able to deliver units on time.”

The United Nations (UN) details that the buildings and construction sector is by far the largest emitter of greenhouse gases, accounting for a staggering 37 per cent of global emissions.

“The production and use of materials such as cement, steel and aluminium have a significant carbon footprint,” said the UN in a 2023 report titled Building Materials and the Climate: Constructing a new future.

During the Kenya Green Building Society (KGBS) conference, the Chief Architect in the State Department for Public Works said that while the country already has a new building code, there is a need for green building standards.

He said these will be ready in about a year. “We need to be guided so that when we are saying we are doing a green building or certifying one, we know which parameters we are talking about,” he said.

According to the Green Building Council, South Africa, a green building is one that, in its design, construction, or operation, reduces or eliminates negative impact and can create positive impacts on the natural environment.

“They preserve precious natural resources and improve our quality of life,” it noted.