Research From CBRE Reveals Occupiers Are Keen To ‘Go Green’
London, 7 November 2011 – Over half of multi-national companies are prepared to pay a premium for environmentally-friendly (‘green’) buildings, according to research from CBRE.
CBRE canvassed the view of real estate executives at 80 multi-national companies, which revealed that 60% would be happy to be pay higher rents for sustainable buildings. Of those companies surveyed, over 90% reported that environmental specifications are either “quite important” or “very important” factors when choosing space.
The findings indicate that increasing numbers of corporate occupiers recognise that sustainable or ‘green’ buildings can deliver significant occupancy cost savings. Of those companies surveyed over 90% reported that they had undertaken measures to control real estate costs in the past two years. The emphasis on cost control is also reflected by the fact that of those real estate executives surveyed 43% now report directly into the Finance Department.
Darren Berman, Director, Energy and Sustainability, CBRE said:
“There has been a view that the importance of sustainability issues had diminished as a result of the recession, however, these findings indicate the opposite.
“This is partly due to the fact that there has been an evolution in how companies view ‘green buildings’: a few years ago it was seen as fashionable for a company to choose environmentally friendly space, now green buildings are seen as a means of reducing their occupancy costs. Cost is still a key driver in location decisions, and there is a growing appetite for green buildings, which despite commanding higher rents should help drive cost-savings.”
