Registration FAQs

This article answers frequently asked questions for teams planning to register or who have recently registered a building project. 

IN THIS ARTICLE

• How do I register a building project?
• When should I register my building project?
• Is Living Future Membership required to register a building project?
• What are the program fees, and when are they due?
• What information should I have prepared for registration?
• What are the next steps after registering my project?
• Is my project subject to fee changes after registering? 
• Will my project be affected by updates to the program requirements after registering?
• Can I switch to a different pathway, program, or version after registering?
• Can I include multiple buildings under a single registration?

How do I register a building project?

Follow these instructions in the Project Portal User Guide to register a building project.

When should I register my building project?

The earlier the better—ideally, as soon as certification has been identified as a project goal. Registration locks in your program requirements and gives you access to technical support from our Buildings Team. Though projects can register at any point in the development process, registering early in design is a proven method for increasing the likelihood of a successful certification.

Is Living Future Membership required to register a building project? 

The individual registering the project (i.e., the application owner) must have an active Professional Living Future Membership at the time of registration. Any additional collaborators invited to the Living Future Portal by the application owner do not need to be members. 

What are the program fees, and when are they due? 

Program fees are published on our website. If you need help anticipating what your project’s fees will be, we’re happy to help—please reach out to sales@living-future.org.

Building projects pay two fees over the course of the certification process:

• Registration Fee: A flat fee due when the project registers. 
• Certification Fee: Based on project square footage, due when the project submits for Ready Audit.

What information should I have prepared for registration?

Your registration application will ask for the following information. Once you have this information on hand, the form should take no more than 15 minutes to complete.

• Basic Project Information
  • If LBC, intended certification path (Core, Petal, or Living) 
    • If the project is pursuing Petal Certification, you’ll also be asked to indicate the Petals you intend to pursue
  • Typology
  • Transect 
  • Estimated Project Floor Area
  • Estimated Project Land Area (for Landscape + Infrastructure projects only) 
  • Brief Project Description 
  • Project Rendering or Photo (optional) 
  • Project Type
    • If the project is Residential, you’ll also be asked:
      • The total number of residential units (if multi-family) 
      • Whether the project meets Living Future’s affordable housing criteria (and if yes, the area’s median income) 
• Owner + Project Team Information 
  • Owner Organization
  • Owner/Owner Representative Name
  • Owner/Owner Representative Email
  • General Contractor Organization
  • Architect Organization
• Project Timeline Information 
  • Anticipated Start of Construction 
  • Anticipated End of Construction
• Project Address
• Terms and Invoice information
  • Indicate whether your project requires a Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA)
    • If yes, you’ll be asked to send a copy to sales@living-future.org for signature
  • Review and agree to the Registration Terms + Conditions on behalf of the project team by providing an electronic signature 
  • Indicate whether you give Living Future permission to use your project information in marketing materials, including adding your project to the Project Map 
  • Company to Invoice 
  • Company Contact 
  • Company Contact's Email Address
  • Mailing Address 
  • Accounts Payable/Billing Contact Email Address (if different from Company Contact Email Address)
  • Other emails where invoice should be sent (optional) 
  • Indicate whether a Purchase Order (PO) is needed

What are the next steps after registering my project? 

Please allow 5 business days for our Buildings Team to review your application and issue an invoice for the registration fee. Payment can be made via credit card, wire transfer, or check. 

The registration process is considered complete when Living Future receives payment for the registration fee. At that time, the application owner and any collaborators they have invited to the application will receive a “Support Intro” email detailing next steps. 

Is my project subject to fee changes after registering? 

Yes. A project's certification fee is based on the program fees as published when the project submits for Ready Audit.

Will my project be affected by updates to the program requirements after registering? 

Generally, no. A project is held to the program requirements as published at the time it registers.

A project may, at its own discretion, adopt and abide by updates within their program version (for example, an LBC 4.0 project registered in Jan 2023 may choose to adopt and abide by an update to the LBC 4.0 requirements published in Sept 2023). However, it is the project team's responsibility to clearly bring any such instances to the auditor's attention in their application. Teams that wish to follow the program requirements under a new version must re-register (for example, an LBC 4.0 project that wishes to follow LBC 4.1 requirements).

The only exception to this rule is if a project fails to submit for Ready Audit prior to its program’s sunset date. If this occurs, the project will need to upgrade to an active version of its program in order to proceed with certification (see below for details on switching between program versions).

Can I switch to a different pathway, program, or version after registering?

Yes. Teams that have not yet submitted for Ready Audit may: 

• Switch to a different certification pathway (i.e., switch between Core, Petal, and Living)
• Switch to a different program (i.e., switch between LBC, ZC, and ZE)
• Switch to a more recent version of the program they are currently enrolled in (i.e., switch from LBC 4.0 to LBC 4.1 or switch from ZC/ZE 1.0 to ZC/ZE 1.1)

The following fees will be due upon initiating the switch:

• Administrative Fee of $250 USD.
• Registration Fee for the new program and/or pathway and/or version. The Registration Fee will be based on fees as published at the time of the project's original registration date, and Living Future will apply the project's original Registration Fee as a credit. For older projects that were following a 3-part payment process, previously paid Pre-Construction fees will also be applied as a credit (such projects will be upgraded to the current 2-part payment process following the switch).

To switch to a different pathway, program, and/or version, follow these instructions:

• Pay the $250 Administrative Fee here.
• Upon receiving your Administrative Fee payment, our team will send email from sales@living-future.org confirming your request. If everything's in order, we'll issue an invoice for the new Registration Fee.
• Meanwhile, our team will set up a new application in the Project Portal for the application owner and all collaborators. The team will be asked to submit a new registration form.
• Once payment for the Registration Fee is received and the new registration form has been submitted, our team will move the application to the Documentation Submission phase. The team will then be asked to transfer any previously submitted documentation to the new application so that the old application can be archived.

Can I include multiple buildings under a single registration?

Multiple buildings may pursue certification under a single registration if the following conditions are true: 

• The name of the project accurately reflects the certified project scope (e.g., if the project name refers to an entire campus, then all buildings on the campus must be certified)
• All buildings are pursuing certification under the same program, pathway, and version; if registering for Petal Certification, all buildings are pursuing the same Petals
• All buildings are located on a single clearly delineated site 
• All buildings are owned and managed by the same entity 
• All buildings are part of a cohesive design and construction effort 
• Water data from each building is aggregated into a single dataset* 
• Energy data from each building is aggregated into a single dataset*
• If pursuing Imperative 08 (Net Positive Carbon) and using EC-012 (Off-Site Renewables Exception), the off-site renewables for each building must be documented in aggregate  
• Materials data and associated costs for each building are aggregated into a single dataset
• All buildings use the same performance period** 
• If the buildings represent more than one Typology, all buildings must meet the more comprehensive of the applicable suite of Imperatives*** 

*All building-level metering and submetering requirements will still apply. Teams are asked to collect and combine water readings and energy readings from each building into a single dataset to enable one comprehensive review. The buildings must meet or exceed the required water and energy net-positive performance requirements as a whole. In other words, individual buildings may fall short of net-positive performance as long as the project as a whole meets the target.

**For example: If a project includes three new buildings with a staggered construction and occupancy timeline, then the first two buildings will have to wait until the third building is constructed and occupied before starting their performance periods. 

***For example: If a project includes both New Buildings and Building Renovations, all buildings must achieve the more comprehensive set of Imperatives required for New Buildings.