In our recent piece, ‘Why Build to Rent should be leading the sustainability charge‘, we discussed the importance of BTR in steering the economy towards a sustainable future. Especially, with the looming climate change crisis. It is pertinent that every nation plays an active role in avoiding the climate crisis.
As a signatory of the 2015 Paris Agreement, the UK has pledged to achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. This is only possible by taking conscious steps in encouraging sustainable construction methods. Sustainability has demonstrated itself as not only beneficial to the environment, but also beneficial to BTR financial metrics.
In this article, we will examine the BTR companies taking charge & successfully implementing sustainable practices.
Moda Living
Moda Living has shown continued support for activities that better the environment in which it constructs. In a first-of-its-kind collaboration, Moda Living and Uber announced a prop-tech tie up to reduce car ownership. Tackling the challenge of creating more homes, while reducing carbon emissions.
Moda Living offered residents who agreed not to take a car parking space in the building, £100 of Uber credits. By eliminating the need for residents to own private cars, Moda, in collaboration with Uber, hopes to create a more sustainable environment with less congestion and pollution.
Within their developments, Moda also implement building management systems (BMS). Which, improve building operations and significantly lower energy consumption (as well as saving on repair costs). They recently entered into a partnership with Utopi, a tech company providing smart building management through the use of the Internet of Things. This system helps monitor and regulate utility systems to simulate real-time control, bringing about efficient use of energy. The BMS also provides early detection of faults with live data capture, making repairs & replacements of faulty parts more accurate.
Essential Living
Essential Living’s Creekside Wharf in Greenwich, is one of UK’s first modular construction BTR schemes. In partnership with Elements of Europe (a modular specialist), plans for construction were announced in 2017. Modules were constructed off-site and assembled on-site.
Modular is an environmentally friendly construction process carried out under factory-controlled conditions. It reduces the waste of resources such as water and energy and significantly reduces the air and noise pollution associated with conventional construction. The largest contributor to climate change from the construction sector, is the carbon released and water used during the physical construction. So, constructing offsite is perfect for combating these major issues with efficiency.
Greystar
Greystar has imbibed sustainability practices in all areas of their investments. As captured on their site, “At Greystar, we strive to make a big impact. Sometimes, making a small impact on thousands of homes creates the biggest returns.” To reinforce this sustainable culture, the company has created the Greystar Green Awards to challenge and encourage their associates, clients and residents to use sustainable alternatives to lessen environmental impact on our communities.
Within their Build to Rent developments, Greystar has been making significant changes, mostly across energy, water and waste to lessen their environmental impact metrics. Greystar has implemented sustainable practices in the use of water by installing low flow fixtures, adjusting water pressure, and adding leaking detection devices. In the area of energy, LED retrofits are installed, and energy improvements on heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning are considered. For waste, the company is increasing the recycling programs, and providing residents with necessary recycling education.
Further, Greystar has embraced the use of modular and off-site construction for their developments. An example is the Greenford Quay’s development in London, that has proven to have enormous environmental benefits, with a shorter construction period. According to research completed by the Heriot-Watt University, compared with traditional construction methods, Greenford Quay’s construction saved an equivalent to 26,000 tons of C02. These savings equate to 160,287 trees planted or 7,030 vehicles taken off the road for an entire year.
Conclusion
The impact of Build to Rent developments on the environment and community is a significant one & as such; it is an ethical responsibility of Build to Rent providers to set a proper standard in sustainability. Although Build to Rents are still investments, finding an intersection between sustainability and profitability is very feasible.
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