Fellow Real Estate Developers, Builders, Investors, and Vendors;
What if prospective purchasers and tenants of our buildings were quickly & easily able to discern if we had cut corners, or gone the extra mile, as it pertains to the energy efficiency of our buildings? What if the energy efficiency of our properties was one of the first pieces of information at their fingertips, and it was as easy to comprehend as a Grade 1 report card? Would this change how we play the real estate game?
It would, and it will. And here is what the new system may look like, as envisioned by ASHRAE (American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air-Conditioning Engineers).
ASHRAE has the credibility and the reach to implement such a program, it is already in pilot phase in select areas of the USA and hopefully coming soon to a building near you. Energy ratings are not just for choosing appliances and vehicles anymore; it is only a matter of time before the BEQ Grade (Building Energy Quotient), or equivalent, will be on every listing sheet across the country.
Smart developers who can read the signs of the times have been catering to the green-demand shift for years, and for them business will carry on as usual, albeit with greater market share. Developers steeped in quick-profit business strategies which traditionally cuts corners on the latent items (ie: energy efficiency) will be in for a surprise as they discover that the marketplace has changed. New terminology has been added to the real estate lexicon, and their prospective tenants/buyers are using an oh-so-handy energy rating as part of their decision making processes. They will be approaching their agents, requesting them to locate “lease properties in SE Edmonton, 20,000 SF, grade loading overhead doors, ample parking, and an energy rating of B- or better.” An energy rating provides the missing tool for this to happen, a spotlight on an area that has historically been harder to ascertain. Think of the stigma that has become affixed to gas guzzling vehicles as a picture of how this can impact real estate.
This is not a threat, it is an opportunity to turn this growing interest in sustainability into a competitive advantage. An energy rating can be worn as a badge of honor and has the potential to become one of our most effective marketing tools.
Special thanks goes out to the award winning Vital Engineering Corporation, who introduced me to the BEQ grade. They are also the guys who can show you how to design a project that earns top grades, and how sustainable design can increase your ROI.
This is allready a fact in Ireland and most European countries it has been law here for over a year that all properies that are for sale or rent must have a building energy rating performed on them. A BER (building energy rating) is similar to the labeling attached to a fridge etc, it gives the consumer a better choice when deciding on which property to rent or purchase although the market for house sales is just starting to improve, the rating attached to the buildings is starting to make an impact on consumer choice.
Also all new builds also have to have a BER performed on them a “provisional ” at the start of build and a “final ” at the end of build, this is then checked by building control to see if the house is conforming with regulations you currently have to build to a B1 standard in Ireland but it is expected that this will change to an A3 from next year onwards
I appreciate you chiming in with this information – I had no idea. Seems like this could open up a new industry of “inspectors” running around performing inspections in preparation for sale or lease.
A few other things that seem to be on the horizon on the energy front is a mandated minimum energy performance requirement for new commercial and MURB within certain municipalities in Alberta. This would happen at the development permit level and be a perscribed energy footprint (w/sqm*year). Supporting documentation is most likely to be provided by an engineer with expertise in energy modelling. The issues at the AUMA stems from risks associated with discouraging development, but that is only because a rating system is not fully implimented in the resale market as of yet. I am a past chapter executive of the local ASHRAE chapter and I concur with this initiative. If a building was truely able to be rated, developers would be able to be able to communicate the cost/benifits of better building evelopes and energy efficient systems (perhaps even alternative energy systems)
This can and WILL change the carbon footprint intensity of new commercial construction in North America. I am in full and total support of this initiative
Dean Turgeon
Vital Engineering