Should I enroll my project in WELL v2 or WELL for residential?

WELL for residential is a unit-level designation and applies to both single-family homes and units in multifamily buildings. WELL for residential is a points-based system with no preconditions (required features), optional performance verification and optional renewal. WELL v2 is a building-level designation with preconditions, required performance verification and renewal every 3 years.

Residential minimums

Multifamily residential projects may pursue WELL v2 if they contain at least five dwelling units in a single building with common structural elements. Projects that qualify include apartments, condominiums, townhouses and other residential complexes within all market thresholds–including affordable housing, market-rate and luxury.

A quick WELL v2 vocabulary note: Dwelling units are always considered “leased space,” even if they have been sold to their occupants. Residents are always considered “tenants,” even if they own their dwelling units.

Projects may pursue WELL for residential if they meet the following requirements:

• Offer living facilities for one or more people including:
  • A kitchen that contains at least:
    • Hot and cold running water and a drain to support a sink.
    • A gas line or dedicated outlet with at least 208 V and 30 A service to support a cooktop and/or oven. 
  • A separate bathroom that contains at least:
    • Hot and cold running water and a drain to support a sink.
    • Hot and cold running water and a drain to support a shower and/or bath.
    • Cold running water and a drain to support a toilet.
• OR be zoned for or otherwise designated by a governmental entity as housing, which may include single-family homes, multifamily buildings, student housing, military housing and senior living facilities.

In addition to the criteria listed above, existing dwellings must:

• Contain no visible peeling, chipping, chalking or cracking paint, stain or varnish.
• Contain no floor covering, insulation, siding and shingles that are friable(easily crumbled), damaged or otherwise not fully operational. 

Enrollment type

In WELL v2, multifamily residential projects utilize the WELL Certification pathways (i.e., not WELL Core), even though most of the regular occupants are tenants. In this case, the project owner may or may not complete the fit-out of the dwelling units. 

Mixed-use projects that include multi-family residential may be eligible to enroll in WELL Core - see the Mixed-use buildings with Multifamily-Residential section of Define your project boundary for more details.

Testing scope

For precondition features, performance testing within dwelling units is not required to achieve Bronze- or Silver-level certification, but it is required to achieve Gold or Platinum certification. See Features A01 (Air Quality), W01 (Water Quality Indicators), W02 (Drinking Water Quality), L02 (Visual Lighting Design) and T01 (Thermal Performance) and the WELL Performance Verification Guidebook for more details.

For optimization features, performance testing within dwelling units is required, regardless of the certification level being pursued.

At recertification, for all levels of certification, performance testing within the dwelling units is not required. Testing will only occur in common areas and spaces dedicated to building management during recertification.