Identifying the Leading Credit Categories in Determining the Overall LEED NC Score of Multifamily Residential Projects

Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) has been the focus of several studies due to being globally accepted as a standard for the design, construction, and operation of highly efficient buildings. However, less research has focused on specific project types and the credit allocation of LEED systems in these projects. This research evaluates the associations between the scores achieved by multifamily residential projects in each category of LEED BD+C for New Construction version 4 (LEED-NC v4) and the overall LEED score of the projects to understand the consistency between the anticipated and actual weight of each category in determining overall sustainability of the projects. Data about the LEED-certified projects was gathered from the U.S. Green Building Council website and was analyzed through a multiple regression analysis. The results showed some consistencies and some discrepancies between the anticipated and actual weight of credit categories. For instance, Indoor Environmental Quality showed a higher influence on overall LEED score compared to Location and Transportation, despite having a lower weight in the system. These findings underscore the importance of periodically reviewing and revising the LEED criteria based on past projects and involving stakeholders in the development of the standards for this system.