2Sustain

More than two-thirds (70 percent) of corporate real estate executives recognize sustainability as a critical business issue, according to new survey results released by CoreNet Global and Jones Lang LaSalle.

What’s more, a full 89 percent of those polled consider sustainability criteria in making leasing decisions, with 46 percent always considering energy labels (such as Energy Star or HPE), and 41 percent always considering green building certifications (such as LEED, BREEAM, IEMA, NABERS Energy, Green Star, GreenMark or CASBEE).

This third annual global study, which surveyed 231 corporate real estate executives in September and October 2009, also found that:

• About three-fourths (74 percent) of corporate real estate execs say they are willing to pay a premium to retrofit space that they own for sustainability criteria.

• 21 percent would only pay more rent for sustainable space if offset by lower operating costs, while eight percent expect to pay less and 34 percent the same.

• 60 percent are adopting workplace strategies to meet sustainability goals while reducing overall occupancy costs –that’s up from 54 percent in 2008.

• More than 50 percent say that insufficient industry metrics, difficulty in calculating ROI and lack of tools for collecting necessary performance data are difficult or extremely difficult challenges.

These survey results reinforce other research which found that business buyers are placing the installation of green initiatives above staffing and IT issues in their list of post-acquisition priorities.

Clearly, even with the downturn in the economy, corporate real estate executives are continuing to focus on sustainability –not just because it’s a “feel good” issue, but because it drives real bottom line benefits.

The full report is available here.