Investigating the economic value of green roofs in Canada's leading cities (Vancouver and Toronto): A hedonic pricing analysis

This report speaks to the urgent need for solid economic arguments to expand the implementation of green roofs in urban areas across Canada by investigating the property values added by such an infrastructure. Using the Hedonic Pricing Model, this report looks at how the existence of green roofs influences the listing prices of houses in Vancouver and Toronto. One thousand housing listing samples are collected for both datasets, totaling 2000 samples, mainly apartments. The study also includes other structural (information on room, floor, and living area) and socio-economic variables (household income) in the HPM model. The results of the HPM analysis demonstrate strong positive effects in both cities, with the establishment of green roofs in Vancouver estimated to bring a 708,117 CAD increase in the listing price. At the same time, 327.46 CAD of a house in Toronto comes with every additional area of green roof in Toronto. This research is crucial since it offers explicit place-based empirical evidence for implementing more robust policies and incentives regarding green roofs. Such conclusions are crucial in combating contrary views, skepticism, and misunderstandings of green roof performance across sectors. Calling for future studies in expanded scope to investigate diverse house types, this report appeals to efforts that reveal the economic performance of green roofs and bridge consensus for more robust policies and actions.