Aims and objectives
The objective of the Better Buildings Partnership collaboration is to find tools and solutions to overcome the specific challenges faced by commercial landlords in improving the sustainability of their building stock.
The main challenge faced by landlords is that it is difficult to justify investment to improve energy performance of buildings when returns from energy savings will accrue to the occupier. From the occupiers perspective, it can be difficult to justify investment in a building where the asset improvement benefits accrue to the landlords.
To enable landlords and occupiers to work together, it is imperative to ease the way by providing the following:
- A template Memorandum of Understanding and example green lease clauses so that occupiers and landlords can formally agree to collaborate
- Understanding of the energy performance of buildings via a robust benchmarking process
- Understanding of the financial models available to make the building improvements viable for both parties
- Understanding of the role of managing agents in building in sustainability
- Understanding of how sustainability affects valuation issues in commercial property
The BBP has been set up to demonstrate leadership and best practice to the wider commercial property market by developing the full range of solutions required, with the expectation being that this will stimulate the commercial property sector to take up widespread sustainable building retrofit in London.
The BBP is complemented by the Green500 initiative which helps occupiers find ‘quick win’ carbon savings in how they use their buildings. The two programmes work together by driving carbon savings in buildings both from the bottom-up and the top-down.