Sustainable Value Drivers

Abstract

A considerable share of the global greenhouse gases is caused by the construction and real estate sector, but the increasing awareness on global climate change within the industry caused the emergence of multiple voluntary environmental certifications. The effects of environmental certification on office rents have received considerable attention in the last decade and there is now much evidence supporting the hypothesis that environmentally certified office buildings achieve higher rents over conventional office buildings. Although much attention has been paid to the United States office market, less attention was spent on the European and specifically the Dutch real estate market. The aim of this thesis is to examine the relationship between environmental certification and market value within the Dutch office market and therefore answers the following question: How does environmental certification influence market value within the dynamics of the Dutch office market? Empirical evidence shows that BREEAM-NL certified office buildings hold an average rental premium of 10.30% over non-certified offices. Furthermore, the rental premium in the G5 varies between 5.13% and 12.64%. The results indicate that the rental premium is positively correlated with the label score and show rental premiums of 10.19%, 6.18% and 14.34% for respectively BREEAM-NL Good, Very Good and Excellent. The results do not show significant occupancy premiums for BREEAM-NL certified offices. This practical evidence on the willingness to pay from the Dutch occupier market intends to bring clarification in the public debate and helps owners and investors in their decision-making around environmental certified investments in their building assets.