LEED for Homes Illinois: Greener, Healthier Living Throughout the Midwest
LEED for Homes Illinois promotes sustainable residential construction across the Midwest, linking homeowners, builders, and project teams with the resources and expertise needed to build high-performance green homes.
Browse the site to discover upcoming events, the LEED building process, program benefits, and the tools that help with certification.
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Join NewsletterHave questions about LEED for Homes? Contact the Alliance for Environmental Sustainability (AES), a 501c3 non-profit organization, toll-free at 888-LEED-AP H (888-533-3274) or by email. AES is grateful for your donations.
In the News
- Jan 10, 2010: Chicago Tribune
- Aug 3, 2010: Chicago Tribune
- Aug 10, 2010: Real Estate Rama
- Aug 13, 2010: Daily Herald
- Aug 25, 2010: New York Times
- Sept 1, 2010: Appliance Design
- Nov 13, 2011: Green Gut Rehab Goes Platinum
Green Building Resources
- 16 ways to Green Your Home
- AES Education and Training
- AES Home Page
- Eco Home Products
- Existing Homes - Green Guide
- Green Bean Chicago
- LEED AP + Homes Practice Exam
- LEED for Homes eligibility
- LEED for Homes – Builder FAQs
- LEED for Homes – Consumer FAQs
- Useful Organizations
- Become a LEED Professional
- Eco Achievers education
- Illinois Solar Energy Association
- ReBuilding Exchange
- USGBC - LEED Homes Education
- USGBC – Illinois Chapter
- USGBC – LEED for Homes
LEED-H Project Tools
- AE 1.3 - Order LEED-H Signage
- Affordable Housing Toolkit
- Find a LEED AP + Homes
- LL5, LL6 Tool - Walkscore
- Preapproved ID point - Utility Tracking
- Rating System 1-page Snapshot
Helpful reads from our archive:
Download Project ProfileBenefits: Why Choose a LEED Home?
LEED-certified homes provide triple bottom line value — for people, the planet, and your wallet.
Healthier People
- LEED homes are healthy homes, cutting allergens and triggers for asthma and chemical sensitivity
- Non-toxic materials reduce exposure to mold and mildew
- Careful design removes uncomfortable rooms
Benefits for the Environment
- Lessen the impact of a home's construction
- Consume less energy, reducing pollution from fossil fuels
- Use materials more efficiently
- Fit in with the local environment
- Improve natural water hydrology
Economic Benefits
- Durable structures built to last with less upkeep
- Lower electricity, natural gas, and water bills
- Cut heating bills by up to 51% or more in the Midwest
- Get 5% insurance discounts
- Raises appraised property value and real estate listing time on market
- May qualify for incentives such as building permit rebates
LEED Homes benefit People, Planet and Profit!
What It Costs to Build a LEED Home
Certain costs are soft costs, like a developer or project team's learning curve, and may hinge on experience with quality or green building. Other costs stem from design choices — for instance, not every LEED home has solar panels, but adding them can raise construction costs. In Illinois, projects can reach LEED Silver for roughly $120/square foot. Hard costs are fairly straightforward: for a typical single-family home certified through AES, single-family LEED costs run $2,500–$3,000. Multi-family projects also qualify and can cost much less per unit.
Reach out with questions, or sign up today!
How Green Building Rating Systems Compare
Plenty of green building rating systems exist. Why pick LEED? In a word: performance. LEED measures the building as built, not just as designed, verifying real performance rather than intentions — assurance that the home truly is green. LEED for Homes is a voluntary rating system built to set apart market leaders and innovators, and it is the most rigorous national program available today.
For an average-size home to reach the entry Certified level under LEED for Homes, 45 points are needed, plus 18 additional mandatory measures that earn zero points — strategies, measures, and techniques that USGBC's consensus committees considered the basics of good, green homebuilding. By comparison, those same 18 measures under NGBS would earn a home nearly 80% of the points required for entry-level Bronze certification.
Energy efficiency is another key area. LEED for Homes requires a home to meet ENERGY STAR for Homes performance requirements, confirmed through measures and performance testing and often a HERS rating showing it is at least 15% more efficient than an average code-built home. Many programs have similar requirements, while others — such as NAHB's National Green Building Standard — reward but do not require this level of rigor or performance testing. Programs that require this standard offer greater assurance the home will perform as intended.
Most programs take a similar approach to green, judging sustainability by energy and water efficiency, materials and construction processes, indoor environmental quality measures, and site and land impact. Beyond that, each program differs in how certification levels are calculated and in its overall structure. For example, both LEED for Homes and NAHB's National Green Building Standard (NGBS, also known as ICC 700) are flexible point-based systems with required measures, while the California Green Builder program is a pass/fail system with no differentiating certification levels.
Leading builders who have long used high-quality construction practices are finding LEED for Homes well within reach. Explore the growing list of LEED for Homes projects in Illinois or start building LEED today!
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Whether you are a homeowner, builder, or project team, understanding the triple bottom line helps you weigh the full value of a LEED home. Healthier indoor spaces, lighter environmental impact, and lower operating costs all work together — and the resources above can guide your next step toward certification.