Green Real Estate
The Chief Executive of The Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors, Louis Armstrong, has predicted that new buildings constructed with genuine green credentials will have a premium of 15-20% added to their end property value and that owners of older stock properties will see a drop in their value, with the differential between the two increasing at a greater magnitude every year.
From now on Companies are going to be under ever increasing pressure to increase their green credentials, this pressure will come from various different sources with taxation being at the forefront followed by clients and staff. One of the unknown factors will be the bottom line on the balance sheet, the cost of utilities such as gas and electricity is going to increase and because the government’s finances are in dire straights, companies and individuals who have lesser green credentials are an easy target for raising taxes.
As well as the green credentials, a new building offers an organisation the opportunity to work in a way that will maximise the efficiency of the workplace, as the design and layout can be customised to suit your own requirements.
Testimony to this has been highlighted by the fact that it is exactly one year since Lauriston Nursery was opened in Dunfermline and already they have long waiting lists for children wanting to sign up to take places. Managing Director Mrs Jacqui Crush commented “Myself and Neil Harris of Cameron Harris spent a lot of time developing the floor plans to try and achieve the perfect nursery taking into consideration the requirements of various influencers such as Building Control, the Care Commission, staff and more importantly the children. After doing a recent survey over 60% of parents have chosen Lauriston Nursery as their day care provider because of the environment that the property provides. At the time of planning, I did not realise the full impact that the environmental features that Neil had proposed would have on our Company, with features such as low energy lighting, underfloor heating and an air source heat pump our running costs have been reduced dramatically compared to those of a similar sized property.”
Neil Harris contributed, “When choosing a new property any company should look beyond the cost of the initial purchase price and look at their ongoing running costs and also the end value. If you buy an older less efficient property, you will be faced with increasing energy costs and an asset with an uncertainty regarding its future value and you will need to adjust your business to suit the constraint of the property as opposed to a purpose built property, which has been designed around your business and will provide your Company the benefit from reduced utility costs and premium on its value.”
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Solar Photovoltaic Training (Edinburgh)
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Scottish Low Carbon Investment Conference
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FREE networking reception for SMEs!
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