Sustainability
becomes the standard
What we do
Sustainable real estate is becoming the norm – there is no escaping it. The government is enforcing it through new laws and regulations. Major property players must make their ESG risks transparent, and demand recognised sustainability labels such as BREEAM and WELL. Here lies a challenge for the entire real estate sector.
The good news is that green leaders have built up so much knowledge and experience over the years that they can provide a sustainable answer to any issue.
C2N is the green real estate expert from the very beginning. Whether it is a new or existing building, simple or complex, we come up with practical solutions that work – and pay for themselves.
ESG
With the world rapidly changing, new laws being enacted, global warming gaining recognition, sustainability is finding its place at the table. The EU has made ESG reporting and the EU Taxonomy mandatory. And although the reporting guidelines are still being developed, governments have already committed to the Paris climate agreement (Paris-Proof). Essentially, ESG reporting aims to increase a company’s contribution to environmental, social and governance risks from 2021, making real esate Paris Proof.
To create a more attractive asset for users and investors, you could look at the ESG side. For real estate assets, the key risks for an ESG report will relate to sustainability, climate change and energy.
As C2N, we combine our expertise in due diligence and sustainability to give you the best possible insight into the status of your property, in which year it will be stranded and how to avoid it. For example, we look at EU tax compliance, energy performance, indoor climate, climate risks, certifications such as BREEAM, among others. We present our findings in a report that clearly shows your property’s ESG risks – and how to make them Paris Proof.
Certification existing real estate
Existing real estate no longer escapes sustainability certification. Legislation (EPC labels, EED audit) enforces energy-saving measures. Investors want insight into the ESG risks of their properties.
Communicating sustainability via an EPC label or a BREEAM-in-Use certificate is obvious, and easy to do.
Our advisory process broadly consists of setting your green ambitions and timeframe against the sustainable state of your property. This results in advice with practical sustainability measures that you can include in a long-term maintenance plan.
Methods such as BREEAM-in-Use are low-threshold and encourage self-direction on sustainability. Here, too, we can support you – from occasional advice to full management of your sustainability project.
In this way, existing real estate retains its future value.
Certifying new real estate
Certification of sustainable real estate is the rule rather than the exception. Internationally recognised certificates such as BREEAM, WELL and LEED are widely recognised as a guarantee that real estate is truly sustainable.
We are also seeing a trend for high-quality real estate to be certified according to BREEAM and WELL – a powerful signal that sustainability is a high priority.
These certificates hold no secrets for us. We have almost 15 years of experience in certifying a wide range of ambitious projects, from small to large, from monofunctional to multifunctional.
The start of our advice always begins with a quick scan that shows whether the green ambitions are feasible, and what needs to be done to realise them.
Depending on our assignment, we further elaborate the quick scan into a detailed action list that specifies who should do what at what time. That action list is our basis for successfully managing the certification process.
Measure -> know -> sustainable -> future-proof
Anyone wanting insight into the sustainability of their real estate, now and in the future, can come to us for a baseline measurement with advice on areas for improvement.
We start with an inventory of your green ambitions and priorities. For instance, are only the legal requirements leading, is there company policy that goes beyond that, and are there stakeholders who make demands. What developments in the market deserve attention.
The results from that inventory are the starting point for a baseline measurement. That measurement shows what has been achieved and what still needs to be achieved, together with suggestions for effective measures.
These measures are scheduled in time. We take into account legal milestones, your priorities and the logical moments for replacement and improvement of components. Supplemented with an investment cost sheet if required, with or without payback periods.
This approach guarantees sustainable real estate with a future.
