There are approximately 40 NAREIT members participating in ENERGY STAR to make their properties more competitive, profitable and valuable. Arden Realty, Inc. Bedford Property Investors Inc. Boston Properties, Inc. Brandywine Realty Trust CarrAmerica Realty Corporation Catellus Development Corporation Cornerstone Realty Income Trust, Inc. Corporate Office Properties Trust Cousins Properties Inc. Crescent Real Estate Equities Company Duke Realty Corporation Equity Inns, Inc. Equity Office Properties Trust FelCor Lodging Trust Incorporated First Industrial Realty Trust, Inc. Glenborough Realty Trust Incorporated Highwoods Properties, Inc. Hospitality Properties Trust Host Marriott Corporation Innkeepers USA Trust Jameson Inns, Inc. Kilroy Realty Corporation La Quinta Properties, Inc. LaSalle Hotel Properties Liberty Property Trust The Macerich Company Mack-Cali Realty Corporation MeriStar Hospitality Corporation Parkway Properties, Inc. Prentiss Properties Trust PS Business Parks, Inc. Reckson Associates Realty Corporation The Rouse Company The Rubenstein Company, L.P. Starwood Hotels & Resorts TrizecHahn Corporation Vornado Realty Trust Washington Real Estate Investment Trust Winston Hotels Inc.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency created Energy Star® to recognize and promote excellence in strategic energy management and environmental responsibility.

ENERGY STAR provides a suite of tools and resources to empower a company to benchmark building energy performance, set goals, implement a proven strategy to improve energy performance.

ENERGY STAR is helping the real estate industry quantify and communicate the value of investments in energy efficiency to shareholders, tenants, employees and other stakeholders. Real estate executives use ENERGY STAR tools and resources to improve energy performance, lower operating costs, and make organizations more competitive, profitable and valuable.

Five-Stage Strategy

ENERGY STAR has developed a five-stage strategy to improve the energy performance of commercial properties. The order of improvements maximizes return on investment; prioritizes upgrades when limited financial resources are available; and draws on the benefits of sequenced investments to reduce the costs of upgrades to high-cost base building systems. These measures can result in substantial savings in upgrade as well as operating costs, and also improve occupant comfort and productivity.

Stage 1: Recommissioning. A building tune-up can reduce energy waste at minimal cost. Traditional operations and maintenance measures, including preventative maintenance, training practices and evaluation of start/stop times for equipment can dramatically improve energy performance.

Stage 2: Lighting. Energy efficient lighting can save up to 70 percent of lighting energy consumption while reducing cooling loads. Predictable savings result from installation of T-8 lamp and electronic ballasts, LED exit signs and occupancy sensors.

Stage 3: Load Reductions. The building envelope and plug loads, such as office equipment, are examined for upgrades to reduce the load on the HVAC system. Installation or recalibration of energy management systems and other control measures are recommended.

Stage 4: Fan and Motor Systems. Upgrading the air handling system takes advantage of variable speed drives and variable frequency drives to control air volume. Putting in place control schemes can ensure proper timing of equipment.

Stage 5: Heating and Cooling. Many heating and cooling units are oversized. In these cases, replacing the existing unit with a smaller, energy efficient model takes advantage of existing inefficiencies and upgrades in earlier stages and provides a profitable investment.

Happy Returns

Energy performance improvements typically have a 20 percent to 30 percent rate of return and are low risk, according to the EPA. At a 10 percent capitalization rate, a real estate company can generate $2 to $3 in incremental asset value for each $1 invested in energy efficiency upgrades.

Understanding the energy performance of real estate can enable your company to:

 
• Reduce the nation’s dependence on fossil fuel and foreign oil;
 
• Lower energy expenditures;
 
• Increase net operating income (NOI);
 
• Enhance asset value;
 
• Increase earnings per share and support higher share price;
 
• Better negotiate future leases and conduct due diligence of potential real estate acquisitions;
 
• Reduce exposure to energy price fluctuations and supply volatility; and
• Improve bargaining position for energy purchase agreements and evaluation of energy service contracts.

If all consumers, businesses and organizations in the U.S. made their product choices and building improvement decisions in line with ENERGY STAR standards over the next decade, the national annual energy bill would be reduced by about $200 billion. Over 320 office buildings across the country have achieved the ENERGY STAR label for superior energy performance. The owners and managers of more than 2.7 billion square feet of commercial office space and 634 million square feet of hotel space have committed to improving the energy performance of their properties through ENERGY STAR.