Asia agrees to 'greener' property premium
A sustainability survey conducted by Jones Lang LaSalle in collaboration with CoreNet Global reveals that 64 per cent of respondents in Asia-Pacific are prepared to pay a premium for greener real estate.
Although actual adoption rates of sustainable real-estate solutions across the region were low, the study, which was conducted at an international meeting of more than 300 corporate-realty professionals at the CoreNet Global Asia Summit, indicated that sustainability as an issue for the commercial property sector was clearly on the rise.The report showed that of those surveyed, 93 per cent of respondents expressed a notable increase in awareness regarding sustainable buildings over the last three years, with 62 per cent calling such growth in associated environmental, economic and social awareness significant. In addition, the findings reflected that strong support among organisations throughout the region for increased sustainable real-estate activity as a business cost of demonstrating corporate environmental responsibility was being recognised. "Occupiers are indicating they are prepared to pay more for green real estate and that it is important for their organisations to occupy sustainable buildings. Although there is a 'green-real-estate premium', providers of corporate accommodation also need to realise that there is likely to be a discount applied to non-sustainable real estate in the future," said Justin Kean, associate director of occupier research. He added that occupiers would be willing to pay more for sustainable real-estate solutions and where possible avoid non-sustainable real-estate solutions. The rising importance of sustainability was reinforced by the survey. Nearly half of the respondents said sustainability was a critical issue for their organisations, with 42 per cent indicating that environmental and social measures were already being embraced as part of their property considerations. The fact that a further 34 per cent of respondents expressed the opinion that sustainability would become a major issue for their enterprises in three years implies that emphasis on greener buildings and work practices is escalating, said Chris Wallbank, the company's director of national sustainability. "In particular, our study has revealed a growing commitment amongst real-estate developers and end-user occupiers towards supporting sustainable real-estate principles," Wallbank said. "Consequently, this is a trend we expect will continue in the future, given the rising levels of awareness and operational necessities associated with sustainability."
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