Moss takes green living to the next level.

Working in a 'green' office isn't uncommon, but what about living green? At Moss Real Estate Group, New York's first green brokerage firm, Christopher Moss, founder, has taken green to the next level by bringing it straight to the consumer's doorstep.

"There is no business to be done on a dead planet," he said, explaining his passion of instilling environmentally and socially responsible practices into every aspect of his business, including the homes he sells.

"I really believe that [not taking care of our environment] is not an option at this point. In order for the human race to survive in any sort of resemblance to our current condition, we have to create a relationship with our surroundings. I think that it's the only logical way to proceed as a business," said Moss.

Moss Real Estate Group was established in 2003, and focuses on introducing eco-friendly homes, from steps as simple as evaluating and improving the way you recycle, buying environmentally sustainable products, and conserving water, to the use of toxin-free paint, adjusting the temperature in the refrigerator and freezer, using compact fluorescent light bulbs and replacing paper coffee filter with reusable ones.

Although some of the latter concepts are initially costly, in the long run they are more cost effective. "There is an incredible opportunity for our planet to embrace capital once we acknowledge that we can use capital to address environmental concerns efficiently," said Moss.

In realizing, for example, that in New York when applying for a coop, the board packages can often be several thousand pages long, Moss developed a paperless board application system called BoardBuddha. "If everyone were to use the system, it would save approximately one Central Park worth of trees every few years," exclaimed Moss. Additionally, BoardBuddha will streamline the entire process of applying to purchase an apartment. Making it faster, easier, and more secure.

"This is the type of creative problem-solving that we are most proud of and we believe can really make a difference," said Moss.

Moss Real Estate Group incorporates many green features into their offices as well. Moss has utilized 100% post consumer recycled paper nearly exclusively for the past three and half years; their office's electricity is generated by wind power; and they are revolved in "1% for the Planet," a non-profit organization co-founded by Patagonia's Yvon Chouinard, where Moss donates 1% of the firm's gross revenue to environmental charities. Most recently, Moss has launched the "Carbon Courtesy Pledge," to off set the carbon emission of every customer who completes a transaction with them.

Currently, Moss Real Estate is working with developers to try to persuade them to build green, and they have been a successful part of creating around, 700,000 s/f of green residential properties throughout Manhattan. "We try to get the developers and investors to see the benefits of a green development," said Moss.

It's been a long road for green from 2003 to the present, and Moss has seen the trend evolve. He said, "Back in 2003, no one wanted to hear that we were green. It was just something that we did because it is what we believed in. Now, that has changed and it has become obvious that people do want to hear about green, and we're just responding."