Environmental Responsibility

At HomeStreet, we realize how important it is to invest in the future by incorporating environmentally-friendly practices into our business lives, inspiring our employees to reduce their environmental impact, and seeking ways to make a difference in our communities.

Energy conservation, lowering carbon output, reducing the use of resources and generating less waste are all critical. We conserve energy through the use of energy-efficient lighting at workstations, in branches and in common areas. We subsidize alternative transportation in order to reduce greenhouse gases as well as traffic congestion. (In fact, when our CEO isn’t biking to work, he’s driving his hybrid!)

Recycling plays a key role in our efforts. We use paper with recycled content in our copiers and printers and in our printed materials. We also make use of products containing recycled materials – such as carpet tiles and workstation walls – in our offices and branches.

In 2006, we became the first bank to join the Seattle Climate Partnership, a group of Seattle-area employers committed to reducing carbon output individually as well as working together as a business community toward this goal. In 2007, we partnered with Seattle Climate Partnership and Cascadia Consulting to do a baseline study of our carbon footprint. Based on the results of that study, we have set a goal of reducing our carbon footprint by 15 percent by the end of 2009.

We support a variety of community organizations that have a positive impact on the environment – including Cascade Land Conservancy, Mountains to Sound Greenway, Capitol Land Trust and Three Rivers Land Conservancy through programs such as our HomeStreet Bank Tree Challenge.

We provide financing for Built Green™ homes and LEED®-certified commercial real estate projects.

These are just a few examples of how HomeStreet is engaged in helping to preserve the environmental health of our planet for future generations. As a longstanding member of the business community, we understand that every action we take – no matter how large or small – can add up to make a big impact.

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