Rancho Cucamonga, Calif. – National CORE is thrilled to announce five new affordable housing communities have each received heralded LEED for Homes Gold certifications from the U.S. Green Building Council.
LEED, which stands for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, is the world’s foremost green building rating system, used for both new building projects and renovations. The rating covers a range of metrics, from sustainable building materials to energy use.
On Aug. 8, the USGBC announced Gold certification for Nestor Senior Village, a 73-apartment community in San Diego County opened in late 2023. National CORE is the developer, owner and operator of the community.
On Aug. 9, the USGBC announced Gold certification for Mountain View affordable housing community, a 71-home development opened in Lake Forest in late 2023. National CORE is the developer, owner and operator of the community.
On Aug. 14, the USGBC announced Gold certification for Vista de La Sierra, an 80-apartment affordable housing community opened in 2024. National CORE is the developer, owner and operator of the community.
On Aug. 18, the USGBC announced Gold certification for 456 West affordable housing community, a 91-home development opened in San Pedro in mid-2023. The community was co-developed by National CORE and Linc Housing.
On Aug. 27, the USGBC announced Gold certification for Santa Angelina Senior Village, a 65-apartment community developed opened on church land in Placentia in 2024.
With the five certifications, National CORE’s portfolio of affordable housing communities now features 24 LEED-certified communities, 17 of which hold Gold status.
“These certifications reflect National CORE’s ongoing commitment to sustainability,” said Tim Kohut, National CORE’s director of sustainability. “Each of our new communities is designed to run efficiently, reducing our impact on limited natural resources and ensuring a healthier environment for our residents.”
National CORE is a six-time LEED for Homes Power Builder, demonstrating the company’s long-term commitment to sustainable development. The Green Building Council recognized Legacy Square, a Santa Ana affordable housing community also opened in 2023, as one of three international 2025 Affordable Housing Projects of the Year.
The quintet of communities are all-electric properties featuring extensive use of solar power, high-efficiency appliances, electric heat pumps, an energy-efficient building envelope and either individual heat-pump water heaters at each apartment or a central heat-pump boiler. Several of the communities employ MoenFlo water metering devices to measure use at each apartment.
National CORE has two additional developments under review for LEED for Homes certification, Kohut said. All are expected to achieve Gold certification or higher.
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About National CORE
National CORE is one of the largest nonprofit developers in the nation, with a more than 30-year history of being an innovator in the field. In 2021, National CORE became one of only two affordable housing developers to earn an A+ credit rating from Standard & Poor’s Global Ratings. In 2022, National CORE issued $100 million in Series 2022 Social Bonds to accelerate the development of critically needed affordable housing. Serving 30,000 residents, National CORE strives to be a launching pad, not a landing pad, for families struggling financially. The Hope through Housing Foundation, a philanthropic nonprofit, was formed in 1998. A partner with National CORE, the foundation provides resident services that promote educational attainment, economic mobility and overall well-being as part of a mission to end the cycle of generational poverty.
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