'Green' buildings bring in more green

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2015-10/uog-bb102015.php

Public Release: 20-Oct-2015
'Green' buildings bring in more green
University of Guelph

'Green' commercial buildings bring in the green for landlords, according to new research by a University of Guelph professor.

Environmentally friendly office buildings have higher rents and occupancy rates as well as more satisfied tenants, says the study by Guelph real estate and housing professor Avis Devine.

It was published recently in the biannual special real estate issue of the Journal of Portfolio Management.

"This is one of the most in-depth analyses of sustainable and energy efficient building operations to date," said Devine, who worked on the study with Nils Kok of Maastricht University in the Netherlands.

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The study examined 10 years of data from one of North America's largest commercial real estate firms and included 58 million square feet of office space - 148 buildings in Canada and 143 in the United States.

Green buildings were those that met energy efficiency and sustainability standards based on three different certification programs: LEED, BOMA BESt, and ENERGY STAR.

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The researchers analyzed both tangible and intangible metrics that can affect financial outcomes, including monthly rents, lease renewals, energy and water consumption, and tenant satisfaction.

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Highlights of the findings for 'green' buildings include:

Rents on average are 3.7 per cent higher;
Occupancy rates were 18.7 per cent higher in Canada and 9.5 per cent higher in the U.S.;
Tenant renewal rates were 5.6 per cent higher in Canada;
Tenant satisfaction scores were 7 per cent higher in Canada; and
Energy consumption per square foot was 14 per cent lower in the U.S.

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