RICS Report Highlights Performance of Green Office Buildings

Though incorporating energy-efficient materials and practices may add expenses to a property’s balance sheet, new research indicates that even in challenging economic times, green office buildings offer significant economic benefits to investors, such as higher rents and lower risk premiums. “Investments into more sustainable business practices and technologies are not only beneficial for humans and the environment, but also for creating long-term value and competitiveness,” said Ursula Hartenberger, global head of sustainability for the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, which recently released the report Sustainability and the Dynamics of Green Building: New Evidence on the Financial Performance of Green Office Buildings in the USA.

The report’s findings, which are based on North American data for office buildings certified by the U.S. Department of Energy’s Energy Star program, show that rents and occupancy rates for green office buildings were higher during the 2007-2009 economic downturn than for properties that did not include energy-efficiency features or practices. “Buildings with green ratings in 2009 commanded rental rates that were substantially higher than those of otherwise identical office buildings,” said Hartenberger. The research methodology controlled the quality and specific locations of the buildings surveyed.