by AF 1227 c3 — December 30, 2009—Building owners in Washington, D.C., will start measuring the energy use of commercial properties on Jan. 1, 2010, under a new law aimed at reducing energy use and costs for building owners and tenants, according to the Institute for Market Transformation (IMT).
Under the new law, the Clean and Affordable Energy Act, passed in 2008, building owners will have to publicly disclose energy ratings starting in 2012, which will give prospective tenants and buyers an easy-to-understand way to compare the energy consumption and operating costs of buildings, according to IMT.
The new law also directs all commercial buildings to measure their energy use with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) Energy Star Portfolio Manager tool.
Building owners can cut energy costs considerably with low-cost energy saving measures such as fine-tuning heating and cooling systems, replacing lights and installing motion sensors, according to IMF.
For commercial building owners, these implementations can translate into higher rental premiums. According to a 2008 study on commercial buildings, Energy Star and LEED-certified buildings can command a higher rental premium, typically between 10 percent and 31 percent, respectively. The report, from CoStar Group found that LEED buildings command rent premiums of $11.33 per square foot over their non-LEED peers and have 4.1 percent higher occupancy.
Washington, D.C., is one of merely a handful of municipalities with similar policies. Others include California, Washington and most recently in New York City.
For more information visit the Institute’s Web site.
