Nations around the world are searching for effective policies that reduce greenhouse gas emissions and confront climate change. Worldwide, commercial building energy rating and disclosure mandates are becoming more common as policymakers target the building sector in energy and climate protection policies.
To keep the industry informed on the latest legislation impacting commercial real estate, CBRE and IMT collaborated to release an updated Guide to State and Local Energy Performance Regulations.
Along with providing updated compliance dates for existing mandates, Version 2.0 offers details on new regulations in Philadelphia and Minneapolis as well as pending legislative efforts in states such as Connecticut, Colorado and Oregon.
One of the key reasons for enacting rating and disclosure mandates is to convey building energy consumption data to real estate consumers such as tenants, investors and lenders who may be affected by buying, leasing or financing properties.
In the U.S., people spend more than $400 billion each year on the energy used in buildings. With more available energy consumption data, building consumers can begin to factor energy efficiency and costs into their purchasing and leasing decisions, much like considering gas mileage when purchasing or leasing a vehicle.
Benchmarking involves measuring and recording how much energy is used in a commercial building and evaluating the performance relative to other buildings of the same product type and region.
The aggregate data of these analyses are giving building owners, policy makers and utilities valuable insights into what has worked so far and where the biggest opportunities for improvement exist.
Although energy benchmarking is a crucial step on the path to reducing energy use in buildings and bringing a new level of transparency to energy consumption, the success of energy-efficiency initiatives will be determined by how benchmarking data is used by owners, tenants and investors in the marketplace.
Whether you’re an owner, investor or tenant, the Guide to State and Local Energy Performance Regulations is the informative resource you need.
Owners
The updated guide is a great boon to real estate owners who have portfolios spanning multiple cities; it allows them to quickly reference what size properties are affected, provides summaries of what they have to do to comply, and directs them to where they can find all the necessary reporting procedures and documentation.
Investors
Real estate investors who are considering investment opportunities in multiple cities can quickly understand the types of properties affected and what benchmarking information is available about the properties they are considering.
Tenants
Last but not least, the guide provides information to real estate departments of companies that lease space. In addition to being able to review the types of properties affected, prospective tenants can find out what information they can expect to obtain about the energy use of buildings during the leasing process.
Access your copy of the concise guide here and visit buildingrating.org for a more comprehensive review of all existing U.S. building energy rating and disclosure laws.
As Global Director of Sustainability, Dave Pogue is responsible for leading sustainability programs for CBRE’s property and facilities management portfolio around the globe. Mr. Pogue manages the development, introduction and implementation of a wide-ranging platform of sustainable practices and policies, working closely with Facilities Management, Project Management, Global Corporate Services and Asset Services to focus on achieving a consistent balance of maximum financial performance and responsible environmental stewardship. Read his full biography here.
This blog post originally appeared on CBRE Green's Speaking of Green blog. It was cross-posted with permission.
