ASIA PACIFIC - Corporate real estate professionals in Asia Pacific are more eager to continue investing in sustainability than their global peers, according to a survey by Jones Lang LaSalle (JLL) and CoreNet Global.
Despite the turbulent economic conditions, the global sustainability survey - which questioned over 400 corporate property executives - found 60% of Asia Pacific respondents said they would pay up to 10% more to occupy a sustainable building.
Globally, however, only 40% of respondents were willing to pay some rental premium, down almost a third from the year before.
"The willingness to pay more in Asia Pacific may be partly attributed to the perception that sustainable solutions are hard to find in markets that are less ‘mature'," suggested Chris Wallbank, Asia Pacific head of Energy and Sustainability Services for JLL.
"What is interesting from the survey results is that most of the respondents have the view that sustainable solutions are increasingly hard to find across the world," he added.
The survey recorded a 20% increase of respondents overall who cited limited or no availability of sustainable space in their respective markets.
Further issues raised by participants included difficulties achieving returns, different priorities present in different locations and a lack of funding to implement their sustainable strategy.
Two-thirds of those questioned said sustainability was a critical business issue today, up from 47% the previous year and over half already adopt energy efficiency programmes and practice recycling and sustainable data collection.
"In tough economic times the ability of efficiency initiatives to deliver bottom-line returns is increasingly important. We have seen that savings of up to 15% are achievable in most existing buildings, using conventional technology that is available today," said Wallbank.
The majority of respondents considered operational metrics like water usage, Co2 and waste a priority. Renewable energy was, however, low on the agenda, with over half citing ‘no interest' or ‘not applicable' in investing in renewable or green power.
Over three-quarters of the respondents said energy and sustainability were vital factors when deciding on locations, and considered green building ratings.
The survey, the second edition by Jones Lang LaSalle and CoreNet Global, was conducted in September and October last year.
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