Exploring sustainable pathways in the green housing market: an investigation of green housing purchase behavior by using PLS-SEM

Purpose Green products are gaining global popularity due to the energy crisis, global warming and other ecological issues of the 21st century. The present article aims to examine the green housing purchase behavior of individuals in developing economies. This study also investigates the mediating effect of purchase intention on the relationship between factors influencing the purchase of green housing and purchase behavior in the real estate industry. Design/methodology/approach A cross-sectional research approach was utilized to gather data from 388 individuals in the National Capital Region (NCR) of India. This article utilizes the “statistical package for social science (SPSS)” followed by “partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM)” to test the formulated hypotheses. Findings The notable finding of this research highlights that environment awareness and environment knowledge significantly influence attitudes towards green housing, subjective norms and perceived behavioral control. In contrast, perceived risk has an insignificant impact on attitudes toward green housing, subjective norms and perceived behavioral control. Additionally, there is a substantial relationship among attitudes toward green housing, perceived behavioral control, subjective norms, green purchase intention and green purchase behavior. Practical implications The results of this research will advance academic understanding and provide valuable insights to individuals, policymakers and real estate developers by aiding them to make ecological and informed decisions. By identifying the factors that shape individual’ intentions to buy sustainable homes, we can contribute to fostering a strong and sustainable future. Originality/value Based on the reviewed literature and the researcher’s previous knowledge, this is one of the pioneering research that incorporates the theory of planned behavior (TPB) with environmental knowledge, awareness and perceived risk while also assessing the proposed model’s efficacy within a developing country, specifically India. Moreover, it represents one of the limited studies investigating actual use behavior toward green housing within the context of the Indian market.