The construction sector lags other industries when it comes to the implementation of sustainability. This paper highlights some of the key barriers in implementing sustainability within the construction industry sector and proposes recommendations to address them. The paper suggests that the four main barriers faced by the construction industry in implementing sustainability are unclear definitions of sustainable construction, ineffectiveness of sustainability reporting tools (SRTs), slow adoption of ‘green’ technology and the negligence of human resource management. This paper provides an original perspective and challenges current practices (or lack thereof) which hinders the successful implementation of sustainability in construction. It will be of interest to project owners, contractors, academics and other construction practitioners who are interested in the outlook of sustainability within the property and construction industry.