SA Green Building Costs & Trends: 4th Edition makes the case

• New study shows average green cost premium fell to 2.40% (2022–2024); long-term returns improving.
• Certification proves performance and unlocks operational gains; results drawn from 199 Green Star office buildings.
• GBCSA, ASAQS, UP & MSCI align costs with investment outcomes, a clearer business case for building green.

World Green Building Week: Why this matters

To mark World Green Building Week, the Green Building Council South Africa (GBCSA) has released the 4th Edition of its internationally recognised study, Green Building in South Africa: A Guide to Costs & Trends.

The message is blunt and useful: green certification is good business for cash flow, for resilience, and for people and planet.

What’s in the 4th edition

‍Since 2014, GBCSA, ASAQS, and UP have tracked the real cost of going green using empirical bills-of-quantities from certified projects Southern Africa’s most robust dataset.

This edition goes further by tying costs to investment performance through the MSCI South Africa Green Annual Property Index, elevating the work from cost audit to business-case proof.

Key findings at a glance

• The Green Building Cost Premium (GBCP) keeps falling: the average for 2022 - 2024 is 2.40%, down from 3.15% in 2019 - 2021.
• On a long view, the median GBCP since 2009 has dropped from 5.95% to 3.43% evidence of a maturing market and cheaper tech.
• Certification is not a badge; it’s proof-of-performance, correlated with better operations and more durable returns (per MSCI data).

Method that decision-makers can trust

The sample covers 199 Green Star certified office buildings across sizes, levels and locations. Costs are unbundled to isolate the “green” component from total spend, giving owners and lenders a realistic sense of what’s incremental versus essential.

Voice from the engine room

“The average green cost premium for office projects certified in 2022 - 2024 decreased from 3.15% to 2.40%. The median since 2009 reduced from 5.95% to 3.43%.

What’s particularly pleasing is the clear evidence these green buildings are more profitable in the long run, this is an investment that makes business sense.”
Georgina Smit, Head of Technical & Executive Director, GBCSA

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Why owners and investors should act

• Less myth, more maths: The premium is modest and declining.
• Performance you can bank: Certification validates energy, water and OPEX performance, reducing risk and improving NOI.
• Capital access: Proven performance strengthens the case for green finance, refinancing and tenant demand.
• Future-proofing: As “brown discounts” widen, certified assets protect value and sell better.

Download the report
Get the full dataset, methodology and case for action:
Download: Green Building in South Africa—A Guide to Costs & Trends (4th Edition)

Bottom line: The numbers have shifted. Building green in South Africa isn’t a feel-good extra, it’s a compounding business advantage.

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