Socal Multiunit Real Estate

10 GREEN BUILDING STUDIES OF INTEREST TO YOU

10 GREEN BUILDING STUDIES OF INTEREST TO YOU

by Jodi Summers

We are always bringing you statics and reports – now we thought we’d bring you a succinct collection. Recently The Green Economy Post highlighted 10 noteworthy green building studies. We’d like to share highlights with you as well as the appropriate links so you can dig deeper. Enjoy and be green…

Global Green Building Trends: Market Growth and Perspectives from Around the World.

http://construction.com/SmartMarket/globalgreen/default.asp

Research conducted by McGraw-Hill Construction Analytics regarding the global green building industry details the market trends and activities driving green building growth worldwide. The new research presented in the report indicates that green building has become a global phenomenon, with 53% of respondents expecting to be dedicated to green on over 60% of their projects in the next five years.

Reshaping Municipal and County Laws to Foster Green Building, Energy Efficiency, and Renewable Energy

http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1107529

credited to Edna Sussman - Hoguet Newman Regal & Kenney LLP

The efficient use of energy in the built environment has been recognized by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) and many other experts to offer a potential greater than any other sector to reduce CO2 emissions using mature cost effective technologies. Many governmental units and professional organizations have committed to a goal of carbon neutrality in buildings by 2030. The paper offers an outline of how local governments can have a critical positive impact on global warming and on meeting these goals by creating a receptive legal environment and enacting mandates that foster green buildings, energy efficiency, and renewable energy both in government operations and by the general population.

Using Mandates and Incentives to Promote Sustainable Construction and

Green Building

http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1066982

Presented by the Social Science Research Network, this report emphasizes that timely, meaningful movement toward sustainability in the U.S. building industry requires state-level legislation that promotes, and sometimes even mandates, green building standards at the regional and local levels.

Corporate Responsibility and Sustainability Dollars & Cents of Green Retrofits

http://www.deloitte.com/assets/Dcom-UnitedStates/Local%20Assets/Documents/us_re_Dollars_Sense_Retrofits_190608_.pdf

This joint study by Deloitte and Charles Lockwood that shows there is substantial statistical evidence that green buildings are better for the environment than conventional buildings. Many forward-thinking companies are realizing that green buildings can be better for business, too. Green buildings offer their owners and tenants a number of bottom-line benefits, including reductions in water and energy use and costs; opportunities with respect to tax credits, permitting, and other regulatory incentives; and greater worker productivity and satisfaction, improved brand image, and better community relations.

Cascadia Value of Green Building Study

http://www.cascadiagbc.org/news/GBValueStudy.pdf

This report by the Cascadia Region Green Building Council, the Vancouver Valuation Accord and Cushman & Wakefield is a tool to help bridge the gap in understanding between the green building and financial communities. It is a study of office buildings in Seattle, Portland and Vancouver, BC and identifies how high-performance green features and systems can increase the value of commercial buildings. The report outlines how value was achieved and how sustainable attributes impact costs, savings, investment income, and capital value.

Energy Efficiency Retrofits for Commercial and Public Buildings

http://www.pikeresearch.com/archives/energy-efficiency-retrofits-for-commercial-and-public-building

Presented by Pike Research, this paper focuses on the energy efficiency retrofit market, which recently received a major boost from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA). The paper observes that the largest potential for long term, sustained growth in commercial building retrofits lies in the private commercial space. Compared to conventional space, high-performance green building space is vacant less often and commands premium prices, leading commercial building owners to adopt green retrofits as a market differentiator.

The Green Building Revolution: Addressing and Managing Legal Risks and Liabilities

http://www.mgkflaw.com/Green%20Building%20Revolution.pdf

Harvard Law School Environmental Law and Policy Clinic - As green building expands from the exception to the rule, certain legal risks are inevitable. For building green to become a standard business practice, parties involved in project construction and management – owners, buyers, tenants, design professionals (architects, engineers, and consultants), contractors, and subcontractors – must become familiar with the legal risks and liabilities associated with green building, as well as strategies to minimize them. This white paper addresses the current movement toward green building, the increasing number of mandates requiring it, and the benefits and costs associated with building green; analyzes the legal risks and potential liabilities to those involved in green building; and concludes with practical recommendations for minimizing such risks and liabilities.

Green Building: Assessing the Risks–Feedback from the Construction

Industry

http://global.marsh.com/news/articles/greenbuildingsurvey/download.php

Marsh, the world’s leading insurance broker and risk advisor, reports lays out the concerns that building owners, contractors, and design firm executives are most concerned about with regards to green buildings. They include risks that may be associated with these projects, including potential financial exposures, uncertainty about evolving regulatory standards and legal issues, validating the qualifications of

consultants and subcontractors, and assessing the long-term performance of green building materials, among other potential issues in green design and construction.

The International Facility Management Association Green Practices Study

http://www.ifma.org/tools/research/surveys/GreenSurveyResults2008.pdf

This IFMA study involves the measurement of attitudes and behavior of facility managers in relation to implementing sustainability initiatives at their organizations.

Overcoming the Social and Psychological Barriers to Green Building

http://oae.sagepub.com/cgi/reprint/21/4/390

This University of Michigan article argues that environmental progress in the building design and construction industry will continue to stall if the significant social and psychological barriers that remain are not addressed. After surveying the three levels of barriers—individual, organizational, and institutional—the article concludes with seven strategies for overcoming them.

**

http://greeneconomypost.com/green-building-studies-3879.htm

THE GREENEST CITIES IN THE WORLD

THE GREENEST CITIES IN THE WORLD
 
Edited by Jodi Summers
 
We like lists, it means a lot of research has been done. Today’s dynamic list is from
Reader’s Digest;  they have come up with a list of world's greenest, most livable cities.
 To compile this list, they have an alyzed data from two top sources covering 141 nations. 
We’ll give you the top 26 greenest cities (as 26 happens to be San Francisco), the rest
 you can find @
http://www.rd.com/your-america-inspiring-people-and-stories/best-places-to-live-green/article45734.html

1. Stockholm, Sweden

2. Oslo, Norway

3. Munich, Germany

4. Paris, France

5. Frankfurt, Germany

6. Stuttgart, Germany

7. Lyon, France

8. Dusseldorf, Germany

9. Nantes, France

10. Copenhagen, Denmark

11. Geneva, Switzerland

12. Zurich, Switzerland

13. Glasgow, United Kingdom

14. Barcelona, Spain

15. New York, United States

16. Brussels, Belgium

17. Hamburg, Germany

18. Hong Kong, PR China

19. Newcastle, United Kingdom

20. Tokyo, Japan

21. Helsinki, Finland

22. Washington, D.C., United States

23. Chicago, United States

24. Vancouver, Canada

25. Dortmund, Germany

26. San Francisco, United States

**

Sources:

http://images.businessweek.com/ss/07/04/0406_liveable_cities/image/7_frankfurt.jpg

http://www.rd.com/your-america-inspiring-people-and-stories/best-places-to-live-green/article45734.html

http://www.primetravels.com/PackageImages/699/Stockholm-Sweden_03-360a032607.jpg

http://highendfood.files.wordpress.com/2009/01/frankfurt_skyline.jpg

http://mamofrizzi.files.wordpress.com/2009/06/tb_copenhagen_denmark.jpg

http://www.bertgulick.com/images/05/copenhagen-denmark.jpg

http://www.iho-ohi.org/wp-content/brussels-belgium.jpg

http://library.thinkquest.org/06aug/01253/Hotspots%20in%20Europe/BrusselsCityImage.jpg

http://wallpapers.free-review.net/63__Shibuya_Tokyo_Japan.htm

http://img61.imageshack.us/img61/3771/eiffeltower2cparis2cfrawo0.jpg

http://www.spa.ucla.edu/up/webfiles/tokyo-shinjuku-45_4.jpg

http://paaia.org/galleries/default-image/san-francisco.jpg

http://www.namss.org/images/AC2008/SanFrancisco.jpg

YALE PICKS THE TEN MOST ENVIRONMENTALLY FRIENDLY COUNTRIES

YALE PICKS THE TEN MOST ENVIRONMENTALLY FRIENDLY COUNTRIES

Edited by Jodi Summers

Every year, Yale University releases an Environmental Performance Index (EPI), calculating national environmental factors such as a country’s environmental health, air pollution, water resources and productive natural resources. So let us present to you the most recent top 10 winning countries who can boast the title of the most eco-friendly nations in the world.

1 - Switzerland

Switzerland’s hard-line legislation on pollution makes it one of the world’s most eco-friendly nations. Switzerland’s strategy is to continue to foster cooperation between organizations and individuals. To make sure everyone is acutely aware of how precious the environment can be, Switzerland charges for their water and waste management services as well as establishing severe environmental taxes. Prevention is the third key tenet, shown by the 2006 development of the Federal Office for the Environment (FOEN), to sustain natural resources and develop safety measures for natural hazards.

2 - Norway

Overcast Norway is the home of the world’s largest solar production plant, owned by REC Group. Norway has also taken emissions seriously, and is now planning on becoming carbon neutral by 2030, not 2050 as originally expected. The change in anticipated timing has been reduced because of what Norway has learned by funding green projects abroad and reducing at-home driving and flying.

3 - Sweden

Sweden’s mandate for a country free of fossil fuels by 2020 puts it as the third most eco-friendly country on the planet. Already, a majority of Sweden’s power is either nuclear or hydroelectric. Solutions for automobile and flight transport include ethanol and animal waste conversion. Additionally, Sweden is one of the world leaders working on harnessing the power of waves. At the University of Uppsala, Sweden is developing “wave power” which converts waves into 4x as much energy as solar power in the same amount of time, with no waste and no emissions.

4 - Finland

Finland is experiencing a remarkable recovery from industrialization, using initiatives to clean up water and air quality in industrial areas, and practicing land preservation. Bravo as Finland has managed to reverse deforestation. The country’s forests are now growing at a greater rate than they are being deforested, showing an environmental gain even with the annual timber harvest. Finland can also be attributed with starting the United Nation’s Environmental Program (UNEP) Task Force for Sustainable Building and Construction, which looks not only at the sustainability of the building, but of the resources and process used to construct it.

5 - Costa Rica

With 5% of the world’s biodiversity contained in one country, Costa Rica has always been on the forefront of environmental conservation. Did you know that a full quarter of the nation is devoted to park preservation? That helps the country score high on the EPI list. Couple their conservation efforts with the fact that Costa Rica uses hydroelectric power in 80% of the country, and add on their 5% gas tax which funds environmental programs, and Costa Rica comes in fifth.

6 - Austria

It’s very impressive that Austria’s environmental conservation measures are enforced by all levels of government, from federal to municipal authorities. For example, waste disposal is a highly regulated department encompassing everything from individual waste to corporate chemical, air and agricultural pesticide pollution. Water quality and forest preservation, are extremely high on Austria’s list of priorities, thus the quality level for Austria’s lakes and rivers is among the highest in the world. The development of Austria’s National Protective Forest Plan has also helped in keeping the nation’s natural beauty pristine.

7 - New Zealand

New Zealand‘s relatively small population in relation to land mass has helped preserve this nation’s natural resources. While automotive emissions and industrial pollutants are still problematic, New Zealand is working hard to develop restrictive legislation and alternative energy sources. The nation was host to the 2008 World Environment Day, and has developed the Environmental Risk Management Authority, which regulates the introduction of non-native species and environmental components so as not to threaten New Zealand’s pristine atmosphere.

8 - Latvia

The Baltics weigh in. By monitoring and reducing water pollution, Latvia’s salmon crop and freshwater bodies are all in the range of “good.” Taken steps toward improvement, Lativia has begun dismantling pollutive farms to reduce fertilizer and insecticide chemicals and allow room for the return of natural forests. Since obtaining freedom from the Soviet Union 1990, Lativa has decreased stationary pollution by 46% and wastewater by 44%, devoting a major portion of environmental funds to water treatment and energy conservation techniques.

9 - Colombia

Beating Costa Rica, Colombia is home to 10% of the world’s species, giving the country a wealth of ecological diversity. While Colombia has had problems in the past concerning deforestation, the detrimental effects of the coca trade, and political strife involving their natural oil deposits, these factors have served to motivate Colombia towards energy conservation and new, less politically tumultuous resources. Colombia has also begun programs for the cultivation of natural parks that support the growth of native medicinal plants with preserves such as the Orito Igni-Ande Medicinal Flora Sanctuary, a 10,626 hectare preserve.

10 - France

The French government is very aware of the problem of climate change. Their strict environmental protection measures are incorporated into the national Constitution and reviewed every year with the eventual goal of 54 million tons of saved C02 by 2010. France is one of the few in the Kyoto agreement to cut such a large amount of emissions so quickly. The country’s laws are comprehensive, covering every layer of production from supplier to producer to consumer. This has helped make France the number one producer of renewable energy sources in the EU, 78% of its energy being nuclear powered, which in turn has reduced nitrogen oxide and other hazardous emissions by 70%.

**

Sources:

http://epi.yale.edu/Home

http://epi.yale.edu/CountryScores

http://www.bemoreeco.com/2009/03/top-10-eco-friendly-countries/

http://www.sussex.ac.uk/International/europe/Sweden.jpg

http://greenferret.files.wordpress.com/2008/09/switzerland-mountain-lake.jpg

http://www.boxturtlebulletin.com/tag/norway

http://www.ippnw-students.org/Chapters/Finland/finland.jpg

http://www.unitedplanet.org/volunteer-in-costa-rica-long-term/images/costa-rica-ocean-view.jpg

http://www.nationalgeographic.com/adventure/0510/photos/Jpegs/NewZealand.jpg

http://www.austria-trips.com/images/Austria-Mountains.jpg

http://www.e-architect.co.uk/riga/jpgs/jurmala_latvia_hoskins_m06.jpg

http://img5.travelblog.org/Photos/61720/335583/p/f/1781.jpg

http://i40.tinypic.com/2qncqxi.jpg

http://www.bargesinfrance.com/premier-burgundy-countryside.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3115/2352156385_c389b09b15_b.jpg

http://www.pbase.com/pj48/image/45644972/original.jpg

GREENING BUILDINGS THE EASY WAY - THE ICC GREEN BUILDING OVERLAY

GREENING BUILDINGS THE EASY WAY - THE ICC GREEN BUILDING OVERLAY

By Jodi Summers

More green building codes anyone? Sure, there are already several green building codes in use today - LEED, Energy Star, NAHB Green, Green Globes, BREEM and the latest, and perhaps most practical to join the crowd is ICC – the of International Code Council.

FYI, you’ve walked through hundreds of International Code Council respecting properties. Most U.S. cities, counties and states that adopt building codes choose the International Codes developed by the International Code Council. As the ICC already has such a huge fan base, they’ve decided to have their input into green building codes > a.k.a. IGCC.

The objective of this new project is to develop a Green Building Code for traditional and high-performance buildings that is consistent and coordinated with the ICC family of Codes and Standards.

“Congratulations on taking such an important step to ensure the creation of such a code system. We are pleased to support this effort in any way possible,” USGBC President Richard Fedrizzi stated publicly, throwing in a compliment to the Code Council for “undertaking a collaborative approach to this important work.”

A bit of insight: the International Code Council, a membership association dedicated to building safety and fire prevention, develops the codes used to construct residential and commercial buildings, including homes and schools.

Being the progressive state that we are, California, has already adopted a green building code, which is incorporated into the template the ICC has come up with for the rest of the country.

“California continues to lead the nation and I commend the hard work of the Building Standards Commission to adopt the first-in-the-nation statewide green building standards,” proudly observed Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger.

The objective of the ICC code will be to raise the bottom line, giving all buildings a greener baseline. LEED, in contrast, is a bolder standard, providing innovative and more challenging ways to reduce green house gas emissions, materials usage, enhance energy efficiency, and all other good green things.

An ICC green code will make politicians, building inspectors and code officials comfortable with adopting and utilizing I-Codes as the basis for building regulations. By adopting an ICC code and augmenting it with what some of the greener cities like Santa Monica, Berkeley, Sacramento and West Hollywood are doing, municipalities will not have to reinvent the code wheel when looking to implement green building practices.

Wisely, the ICC Green Building Code is an overlay that can integrate with the I-codes that already exist in most jurisdictions.

**

http://www.greenbuildinglawblog.com

http://www.greenerbuildings.com/blog/2009/08/20/why-world-needs-another-green-building-standard

http://www.iccsafe.org/

http://www.socalgreenrealestateblog.com/?p=157

http://www.iccsafe.org/news/nr/2009/0722_USGBC.pdf

GLOBAL DEMOGRAPHICS ARE SHAPING REAL ESTATE TRENDS

GLOBAL DEMOGRAPHICS ARE SHAPING REAL ESTATE TRENDS

Edited by Jodi Summers

Global Demographics: Shaping Real Estate’s Future offers recent research from the Urban Land Institute about the effect of global demographic change on real estate.

“Over the next 20 years, demographic megatrends — and their variations by continent — present the real estate industry with tremendous opportunity to not only grow, but to better serve the people real estate is designed for,” said David Jacobstein, senior advisor to co-sponsor Deloitte LLP ’s Real Estate practice. “Mature economies — especially growing ones — offer attractive investment opportunities, but emerging markets require vast quantities of infrastructure, as well as residential, retail, office, and hotel properties to support their burgeoning populations.”

Findings from the report include:

Aging

The aging of the world’s population is arguably the single most dramatic demographic trend today, with three key trends emerging:

v In 2006, almost 500 million people worldwide were 65 and older.

v By 2030, individuals 65 and older are projected to increase to 1 billion — equaling one out of every eight people on earth.

v The most rapid increases in the 65-and-older population are occurring in developing countries, which will see a jump of 140 percent by 2030.

Real estate implications

v Retirement housing is the primary real estate beneficiary of global aging, with the U.S. senior housing industry set to benefit from the opportunity to produce new products.

v Rapid consolidation of senior housing operators will result in more professional and cost-effective management.

v Investor interest will continue to grow because economic cycles have little effect on dementia and nursing care facilities.

v There is increased demand for affordable senior housing and senior housing options in ethnic communities.

Urbanization

As of 2007, 3.3 billion people — half of the world’s population — live in urban areas. With that number expected to increase to 60 percent by 2030, five key trends are emerging:

v One billion people live in slums, with 90 percent of this population occurring in developing countries.

v At least 133 million city dwellers in the developing world lack durable housing.

v Twenty percent of urban dwellers in emerging nations are overcrowded, with more than three people per bedroom.

v Only two-thirds of the world’s urban population has access to tap water, with only 46 percent having access in their homes.

v More than 25 percent of the world’s urban population lacks adequate sanitation.

Real estate implications of these urbanization trends include:

v Investing in infrastructure — whether new or established — is essential to the viability of long-term commercial real estate projects. Privatization of infrastructure through public/private partnerships with investment funds are becoming increasingly important, with notable examples occurring in the United States, Spain and France.

v Better land use controls should be implemented to prevent high-density, informal communities from developing and reduce outward urban sprawl because both trends present difficulties to residents in terms of infrastructure, safety and lifestyle.

v There is increased demand for housing and retail as a result of a growing workforce.

v In stagnant or shrinking populations, new construction must be viewed as replacement properties — even if that entails older building demolition to maintain vacancy rates — as has occurred in continental Europe.

v Emerging markets can leap from traditional, organic models to contemporary multi-use projects and residential communities if ground level infrastructure is established.

v The lack of mortgage availability in the emerging market is the greatest limitation on new development.

http://www.reuters.com/article/pressRelease/idUS187513+12-Jun-2008+BW2008061

http://totallycebu.com/aging-lecture

http://www.flickr.com/photos/lwr/165513789/

LOS ANGELES IS A BETTER PLACE THAN PARIS TO BUY INVESTMENT REAL ESTATE

LOS ANGELES IS A BETTER PLACE THAN PARIS TO BUY INVESTMENT REAL ESTATE

Sacre bleu! Los Angeles is a better real estate…according to Forbes.com. In a recent top 10 article called World’s Best Places For Real Estate Buys, Ten cities investors will target in 2009 our beloved Los Angeles was #7 – after San Francisco and before Paris.

Washington D.C. topped the list this year, thanks to the proposed $1 trillion swell of government spending. As Forbes notes, “At present, D.C. has the lowest unemployment rate in the country–4.1%, compared to the 7.2% national average. With President Obama’s stimulus package recommending $1 trillion in new spending, it’s unlikely government jobs–and those they support–will be leaving the District anytime soon.”

Not many investors were looking at L.A. in 2008, as we were hammered by the subprime crisis and a massive volume of foreclosures. As we all know, our perceived property poverty curtailed spending and our whole local economy limped along. We were 19^th on the 2008 Forbes World’s Best Places For Real Estate Buys, so this 12-point rise is a huge boost for real estate morale.

“It’s all about perception,” notes a local investor. “If people perceive Los Angeles is a good value, then it becomes a good value, and prices grow strong.”

Good news for local property owners - sales surged 102%in the residential sector, according to Radar Logic, a derivatives firm, and Forbes notes that this wave “has that market hinting at a bottom.”

The 2009 Top 10 Best Places For Real Estate Buys

1. Washington, D.C.

2. London, U.K.

3. New York, N.Y.

4. Tokyo, Japan

5. Shanghai, China

6. San Francisco, Calif.

7. Los Angeles, Calif.

8. Paris, France

9. Houston, Texas

10. Singapore

Please note Forbes’ rankings come from the Association of Foreign Investors in Real Estate, a research association that tracks where member investors are finding the best opportunities around the world.

Get the whole story @ http.//www.forbes.com/2009/01/21/investment-obama-realestate-forbeslife-cx_mw_0121realestate.html?partner=alerts

http://mightyminnow.files.wordpress.com/2007/11/washington-dc.jpg

http://www.pointernet.pds.hu/touristinfo/free_wallpapers_2/France_Paris_Night.jpeg

REAL ESTATE RENTAL RATES EXPECTED TO INCREASE IN MAJOR CITIES

GROSS REAL ESTATE RENTAL RATES EXPECTED TO INCREASE IN MAJOR CITIES

By Jodi Summers…

It feels like the whole world is in an adjusting real estate market…and multiunits are predicted to become more affordable.

“Across the board, we still see property values are too high in terms of gross rental yields,” observes Matthew Montagu-Pollock, publisher of www.Globalpropertyguide.com. “Markets got ahead of themselves and eventually will collapse.”

Globalpropertyguide.com recently did the research for a Forbes.com report - World’s Priciest Cities To Own A Home.

The report indicates that the gross rental yields, a measure used in the United Kingdom, is the total yearly gross rent divided by the house price and expressed as a percentage, are between 4% and 5% in major cities such as Brussels, Belgium; Tokyo; Moscow; New York; and London.

The lower the gross rental yield, the more overvalued the property.

The “more reasonable” historical average for gross rental yields is 5.5% to 8%.

Six major cities currently offer rental yields of more than 10%. Topping the list is Chisinau, Moldova, with a 14.17% gross rental yield, and Cairo, Egypt, the least expensive property market, with an average price per square feet of $574 and gross rental yield of 12%.

The report suggests that it will take much more time to close the gap and return to normal averages.

Sources:

http://www.forbes.com/2009/02/09/cities-top-expensive-lifestyle-real-estate_0209_cities.html?partner=alerts

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Housing_bubble

http://www.globalpropertyguide.com/

http://www.tiraspoltimes.com/photos/chisinau_the_capital_of_moldova_the_eus_javier_solana_rules_out_eu_membership_for_the_country_which_is_mired_in_corruptio

http://www.ellipsesolutions.com/Locations.aspx

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Botanica_Chisinau.JPG

http://www.cnn.com/WORLD/9710/22/russia.troubled.union/moldova.chisinau.lg.jpg

http://www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/europe/united_kingdom_pol87.jpg

http://persistentillusion.files.wordpress.com/2008/02/moldova-chisinau-webpage.jpg

http://www.love-egypt.com/images/cairo.jpg

http://media-2.web.britannica.com/eb-media/11/20111-004-81B895AA.jpg

http://www.world-mysteries.com/gw_mgray5.htm