We've been working overtime here at GreenRenter to launch a couple major changes to the site.

First, introducing the new GreenRenter Score! When we launched GreenRenter almost a year ago we shied away from rating buildings according to their shade of green. We reasoned that there were plenty of other people out there doing that, namely the US Green Building Council and their LEED rating system.

But, much of the early feedback we received from bloggers like Paul Smith at GreenSmith Consulting and sites like KillerStartups (thanks everyone!) suggested that renters needed an easy way to compare the properties they're interested in. While we still think trying to compare two buldings is an apples and oranges problem, we think we've found a simple and relatively painless scoring system that has benefits for everyone.

Every residential building on GreenRenter (commercial building scores are coming soon!) now has a 1 to 5 score, the higher the score the greener the building. The score is based on the building's green features, with weight given to innovativeness and breadth. You can also filter by score, using the filters on the right side of the list pages.

We go into more detail about the GreenRenter Score in our FAQ, and feel free to contact us with any questions or comments!

GlobeSt.com, a real estate investment website, contacted us last week for an interview. It was a great chance to discuss how the company got started and where we are heading.

GreenRenter wants to make it easier for owners of green buildings to find potential tenants. Launched earlier this year, the site lists commercial and residential properties in Portland, OR, the hometown of the site's three founders--Pam Neild, Lev Tsypin and Marti Frank. "We're working out the kinks, refining the site and improving functionality. Once we've got our concept down, we'll expand to other US cities," Neild says. In the first of a two-part article, GlobeSt.com asked Neild to explain the origins of the site.

Read the complete interview.