We’ve become familiar with the phrase, and often know it when we see it, but where did the phase originate?
Coined in 1987 in the Brundtland Commission report to the United Nations, sustainable development is”“Meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs.”
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We talk about getting “LEED certified” when redeveloping properties, and about the importance of getting certification for apartments on a unit-by-unit basis rather than the entire building, but what does LEED certification really mean?
From the US Green Building Council website,
LEED is an internationally recognized green building certification system, providing third-party verification that a building or community was designed and built using strategies aimed at improving performance across all the metrics that matter most: energy savings, water efficiency, CO2 emissions reduction, improved indoor environmental quality, and stewardship of resources and sensitivity to their impacts.
Developed by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), LEED provides building owners and operators a concise framework for identifying and implementing practical and measurable green building design, construction, operations and maintenance solutions.
LEED is flexible enough to apply to all building types – commercial as well as residential. It works throughout the building lifecycle – design and construction, operations and maintenance, tenant fitout, and significant retrofit. And LEED for Neighborhood Development extends the benefits of LEED beyond the building footprint into the neighborhood it serves.
Further reading can be found at the LEED website.
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Discussion of “sustainability” and triple bottom line often beg the financial question – does it literally pay to go green? In a research paper published in July 2008, researchers from the Burnham-Moores Center for Real Estate at University of San Diego confirmed that good for the world around us is also a good financial investment.
In this study and call for further research, we provide some comparison data on Energy Star and LEED-certified buildings vs. non-Energy Star or non–LEED-certified office property from the entire United States using the CoStar database. These results are promising for the benefits of investment in sustainable real estate, energy savings and for the green movement now sweeping our society. The payoff from wise green investment is easy to justify even if it’s based on purely profit motivations.
Read the complete research paper – “Does Green Pay Off?“
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Understanding the “Walk Score” for urban properties is telling, particularly when there are so many terrific neighborhoods in a city the size of Portland, OR. Within the very eco-conscious, lifestyle-oriented area, the quality of life and “walkability” of a given neighborhood is a key factor for renters and buyers alike.
As described on WalkScore’s website,
Walk Score calculates the walkability of an address based on the distance from your house to nearby amenities. Walk Score measures how easy it is to live a car-lite lifestyle—not how pretty the area is for walking.
What does my score mean? Your Walk Score is a number between 0 and 100. Here are general guidelines for interpreting your score:
- 90–100 = Walkers’ Paradise: Most errands can be accomplished on foot and many people get by without owning a car.
- 70–89 = Very Walkable: It’s possible to get by without owning a car.
- 50–69 = Somewhat Walkable: Some stores and amenities are within walking distance, but many everyday trips still require a bike, public transportation, or car.
- 25–49 = Car-Dependent: Only a few destinations are within easy walking range. For most errands, driving or public transportation is a must.
- 0–24 = Car-Dependent (Driving Only): Virtually no neighborhood destinations within walking range. You can walk from your house to your car!
We ran evaluated the 3810 SE Division property, rating a 72, or “very walkable.” By contrast, 3103 SE Division received an 88. And the Forest and Garden Apartments on NW Hoyt? – A perfect score of 100.
So why does Urban Development Partners care about the walk score?
Because “human-scale” communities are not only good for our grandchildren and their children, but good financial investments as well (just see – or better yet, listen to – the NPR interview with Christopher Leinberger, a research fellow at the Brookings Institution speaking on “walkable neighborhoods” and the imbalance of supply and demand for such neighborhoods).
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To be a savvy investor in US real estate these days, you need to look beyond the business news headlines and target human-scale developments that will grow because of long-term demographic trends.
Human-scale homes and communities feature amenities that you can walk, bike, or take public transit to without getting in a car. I live in such a development in Grayslake, Illinois, where I can walk or ride to Starbucks, the supermarket, bank, dry cleaner, library, and hardware store. I wouldn’t want to live anywhere else right now.
You won’t generally find human-scale communities in sprawling urban areas dominated by highways, or what I call “spurbs.” Investing in human-scale development is a relatively new and enlightened way of buying real estate. You may be able to profit in real-estate investment trusts, or REITs, or find communities that feature this kind of construction.
Christopher Leinberger, a research fellow at the Brookings Institution and real-estate developer, says human-scale or “walkable” communities command a premium of 40% to 200 % in cost per square foot over properties in car-centric neighborhoods.
Read the full article – “Real Estate’s Next Big Thing: Walkable Communities“
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UDP’s construction project–”The Reliable” was recently highlighted in the Portland Business Journal, the local syndicate of Biz Journals.
Urban Development Partners plans to own each project for the long term, similar to two projects it already owns in Portland.
“We’re not out to make a quick buck,” said partner Eric Cress.
Read the entire article in the April 9th, 2010 Edition.
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