From the Preservation Studio

Paid to Preserve: Historic Tax Credits

People are generally happy about saving our historic buildings, right? They have a charm and irreplaceable quality that even casual inhabitants notice…until you add a price tag. Unfortunately, preserving historic buildings is not always cheap. While the building being preserved of course already exists, renovating, restoring or rehabilitating it has to be done in a pre-existing context that isn’t always cost-effective. Many of the techniques for cutting costs used in new construction simply can’t apply to existing, and especially old existing, buildings. This reality, pitted against the fact that historic buildings nevertheless have some intrinsic value, is largely why tax incentives have sprung up at both national and local levels. They are a way of affirming both the cost and value of preserving the past. Continue reading