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The future is now. Hundreds of Net Zero and Net Zero Ready buildings are on this site, and more are coming online every day.

Net Zero buildings are all-electric and produce or procure renewable energy to cover their operational emissions. Net Zero Ready buildings are electrified and efficient enough to run on renewable energy as soon as sources are available.

Net Zero and Net Zero Ready Projects by Year (GSF)
Year Net Zero Ready GSF Net Zero GSF Total GSF
2003 0 19,200 19,200
2009 0 16,800 16,800
2010 0 93,833 93,833
2011 0 68,400 68,400
2012 112,000 80,336 192,336
2013 132,900 924 133,824
2014 16,800 235,220 252,020
2015 142,295 194,500 336,795
2016 154,897 176,565 331,462
2017 478,278 198,635 676,913
2018 259,523 104,700 364,223
2019 60,905 389,545 450,450
2020 564,754 192,946 757,700
2021 2,269,687 243,963 2,513,650
2022 1,189,161 1,635,266 2,824,427
2023 2,546,879 1,501,785 4,048,664
2024 6,409,316 3,398,030 9,807,346
2025 10,056,227 3,555,666 13,611,893
2026 6,941,093 3,635,349 10,576,442
2027 8,798,465 2,886,118 11,684,583
2028 10,101,255 2,619,747 12,721,002
2029 7,087,009 4,228,454 11,315,463
2030 8,367,851 1,597,953 9,965,804
2031 353,198 595,000 948,198

This trend stretches across every industry.

From multifamily housing and K-12 schools to labs and healthcare, projects across a wide range of industries are achieving high-performance building standards, proof that achieving Net Zero is possible regardless of project type.

Net Zero Building Types
Building Types Number of Projects
Education K-12 94
Education: Higher Ed 30
Food Sales & Service 0
Healthcare 10
Laboratory / Tech / Science 53
Lodging 26
Manufacturing / Industrial 0
Mixed Use 59
Office 24
Public Assembly / Entertainment 22
Public Services 18
Residential: Affordable Multi Family 172
Residential: Multi-family 139
Retail 2
Senior Living 51
Warehouse / Storage 1
Total 701

Net zero buildings are being built at the same cost as conventional buildings.

Of the projects that reported cost data, many Net Zero and Net Zero Ready buildings have less than a 1% construction cost premium compared to conventional buildings. High-performing buildings also significantly reduce operating costs, which can offset any upfront premiums in a matter of years.

Projects by Construction Cost Range
Cost Range Number of projects
<-11% 2
-11% to -6.1% 0
-6% to -3.1% 0
-3% to -1.1% 0
-1% to 1% 61
1.1% to 3% 9
3.1% to 5% 4
5.1% to 8% 12
8.1% to 10% 2
10.1% to 12% 0
>12% 1
Not calculated 86
Total 177

Net Zero buildings employ a range of heating options to achieve electrification.

The majority of Net Zero and Net Zero Ready projects employ heat pumps to electrify their heating and cooling operations. There are many options available to design teams, made easy by low overall energy demand in ultra-efficient projects.

Projects by Heat Source
Heat Sources Number of Projects
Air-source Heat Pump 508
Exhaust-source Heat Pump 8
Ground-source Heat Pump 130
Water-source Heat Pump 5
Variable Refrigerant Flow (VRF) 99
Total 750

Electrification of domestic hot water is possible for large scale buildings across a variety of industries.

Many projects use electrified domestic hot water systems, deploying a range of strategies with proven performance across multifamily, education K-12, and lab projects, just to name a few.

Hot Water Heating Source by Project Type
Project Type Air-source heat pump Electric resistance instantaneous Electric resistance storage Ground-source heat pump Heat recovery heat pump District heating electric Unspecified Total
Education K-12 5 7 11 16 0 0 55 94
Education: Higher Ed 3 0 2 2 0 0 23 30
Food Sales & Service 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Healthcare 2 0 1 1 0 0 4 8
Laboratory / Tech / Science 4 5 8 2 1 1 28 49
Lodging 8 1 6 1 0 0 7 23
Manufacturing / Industrial 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Mixed Use 28 1 5 1 0 0 23 58
Office 6 2 2 0 0 0 13 23
Public Assembly / Entertainment 6 3 1 2 0 0 9 21
Public Services 2 0 3 0 0 0 13 18
Residential: Affordable Multi Family 67 6 10 1 4 0 41 129
Residential: Multi-family 43 6 16 3 0 1 48 117
Retail 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 2
Senior Living 26 0 2 1 0 0 5 34
Warehouse / Storage 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1
Total 200 31 69 31 5 2 269 607

Projects are achieving Net Zero through on-site and off-site renewable energy procurement.

There are many procurement methods for renewable energy, which can greatly reduce operating costs and strain on the grid. This is happening across project types, powering buildings of all sizes.

On and Off-site Renewable Energy for Net Zero Buildings by Project Type
Project Type On-site Only Both Off-site Only Total
Education K-12 7.555 0.720 0.000 8.275
Education: Higher Ed 0.882 0.751 0.275 1.908
Food Sales & Service 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000
Healthcare 0.451 0.236 0.595 1.282
Laboratory / Tech / Science 3.971 0.460 3.944 8.376
Lodging 0.471 0.265 0.000 0.736
Manufacturing / Industrial 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000
Mixed Use 2.227 1.130 0.553 3.910
Office 1.195 0.215 2.946 4.356
Public Assembly / Entertainment 0.196 0.000 1.669 1.866
Public Services 0.643 0.077 0.000 0.720
Residential: Affordable Multi Family 5.163 0.271 0.250 5.684
Residential: Multi-family 3.030 0.912 0.355 4.296
Retail 0.022 0.000 0.000 0.022
Senior Living 1.465 0.329 0.000 1.794
Warehouse / Storage 0.090 0.000 0.000 0.090
Total 27.361 5.366 10.587 43.314