'Premium' equals 'green' in Property Council of Australia's new guide to office building quality

The Property Council of Australia’s newly revised Guide to Office Building Quality has identified 5 Star Green Star and 5 star NABERS Energy ratings as the benchmark for new Premium Grade buildings.

“The 2012 edition of the PCA’s Guide is clear evidence that ‘Premium’ and ‘Green Star’ are now synonymous,” says the Chief Executive of the Green Building Council of Australia, Romilly Madew.

“The market now equates ‘premium quality’ with high-performance, green buildings,” Ms Madew says.

The Guide provides 60 parameters for the classification of office space into grades – from Premium to Grade A, B, C or D.

Criteria include building size, location, environmental performance, mechanical and electrical provisions as well as building services and amenities.

Peter Verwer, Chief Executive of the Property Council of Australia, has said that the new expanded environmental performance metrics in the Guide “demonstrate what industry already knows – sustainable design and management of office buildings has become part of core business.”

According to Romilly Madew, the PCA’s new benchmark for ‘Premium’ office buildings reflects the market’s growing confidence in Green Star-rated buildings.

“The Australian Property Institute and Property Funds Association’s ‘Building Better Returns’ report, released in September, found that Green Star-rated buildings are delivering a 12 per cent ‘green premium’ in value and a five per cent premium in rent,” Ms Madew says.

“A building with a high Green Star rating is not only considered ‘premium’ office accommodation, but is also more likely to deliver a range of benefits from higher return on investment, reduced vacancies and rental premiums.  It’s clear that Green Star makes good business sense,” Ms Madew concludes.

Contact:
Karen Jamal
Communications Manager
Green Building Council of Australia
Phone: 0412 179 135
Email: karen.jamal@gbca.org.au