Green: Reducing long-term Operating and Occupancy Costs

Case for Green Buildings Grows Stronger for Owners, Occupants

CoStar, CB Richard Ellis and USGBC Researchers Hope to Study Real-World Examples of Benefits and Obstacles to Green Building Implementation

March 9, 2011 - Evidence continues to stack up in the form of updated studies by CoStar Group, CB Richard Ellis, McGraw Hill Construction and other commercial real estate leaders that green practices are reducing long-term operating and occupancy costs, improving occupant health and boosting employee productivity - though not all those variables are fully understood or measureable as yet.

Those were among the findings of the spring update of "Current Trends in Green Real Estate," the latest presentation on sustainability presented jointly by CoStar Group, the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) and this month, CB Richard Ellis, which explored the experiences, views and expectations of landlords, tenants and other occupiers on such issues as indoor air quality, water and energy efficiency, building materials and the relative economic costs and benefits of green practices at the property and investment levels.

"The kind of benefits we see from green building might include increased tenant retention, faster absorption and higher rents based on higher productivity as tenants gain experience in better work environments," said Norm Miller, vice president, analytics, CoStar Group. "Right now, there are clear advantages through increased absorption and higher rents for most but not all markets, and there’s a significant payoff for long-term oriented owners. But we're going to continue to monitor and study these benefits and costs." {continued}