Green Real Estate Earning Profits Not Just Kudos via NREI Readers Write

BY GREG MARTIN OCTOBER 5TH, 2012

Sustainability trends have changed the real estate industry, but the cost of ‘green’ and LEED-certified real estate can be tough to swallow for developers and investors. Yet the landscape has changed while most of us were away at the recession: According to a slew of recent research, companies are showing that, rather than an earnings-drag, sustainably-designed properties can be a real boon that builds brand, differentiates from the competition – and makes profits.

Sustainability measures and monikers are proliferating in the real estate industry, beyond the pioneering Leadership in Energy and Environmental Development from the USGBC as well as the Energy Star system that’s expanded from its original focus on appliances to include entire buildings. Among the newer measures are the Green Building Challenge, Net-Zero Energy buildings, and the University of Maastricht–sponsored Global Real Estate Sustainability Benchmark, which is gaining international attention, including from NAREIT and other US organizations. Just this past April, the American Institute of Architects endorsed the International Green Construction Code, seeking a global standard. On the investment side, Responsible Property Investing (RPI) is a tenet of “creating value through improving the economic, social, and environmental profile of the investments,” and includes leading real estate funds among its followers.

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