Green my Landlord

Apartment living can be unhealthy. Landlords often use inexpensive--and toxic--paints, carpets and other materials that off-gass harmful VOCs into your breating environment. It's not necessarily that they wish a pox upon you and yours, mind you, but these cheap materials are sturdy and easy to replace--and until fairly recently, who knew?

But times are changing. Energy savings alone should be enough to propel most rental property owners down a greener path. And as we've seen here at Building Green, the main investment in making green choices is time, not money. There are greener options available to fit most any budget, including your landlord's. According to The Daily Green, apartment life is about to get a lot nicer for a lot of folks, with the Building Owners and Managers' Association (BOMA) announcing a 7 point plan for changing the ecological mindset of tenants, managers and owners alike.

“Buildings can easily achieve a 30% energy reduction through a business case, meaning they’ll save more than they are spending,” BOMA's Brenna Walraven told The Daily Green's Brian Clark Howard, referring to developers of rental properties.

By the way, if you're a renter, hop on over and check out Apartment Therapy's fantastic new green blog, where Building Green's own Stephanie Kinnear has taken up part-time residence. She'll tell you all about the green apartment building in the picture.