2024 Real Estate Assessment Results

This year’s GRESB Results highlight significant progress in energy savings, emissions reduction, water conservation, and the enhancement of human well-being. Critically, as we continue to address global sustainability challenges, we must continue to raise the bar for future performance, pushing the real assets industry transition to a more sustainable, resilient, and low-carbon future.

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The GRESB Real Estate Benchmark globally covers USD 7 trillion in GAV, that’s across 15 sectors in 80 markets with average scores of 75.84 (Standing Investments) and 85.76 (Development).

• Net zero targets are on the rise, with a 15% increase in participants setting net zero goals, now reaching 65%; of these, 29% of real estate participants have incorporated embodied carbon into their net zero plans.
• Climate risk adoption remains high with 94% of participants incorporating resilience into their climate strategy.
• The benchmark saw significant growth in Asia, with a 15% increase in regional participation.

GRESB Scores provide a clear picture of the relative performance and risk of real estate assets by evaluating management practices (y-axis) and implementation performance (x-axis).

In recent years, this quadrant has become more densely populated, signaling positive strides in sustainability practices. However, as we continue to evolve the GRESB Standard, we aim to see scores spread further across the performance spectrum. This differentiation will indicate that we are raising the bar, encouraging even top performing participants to implement impactful changes and setting higher benchmarks for the industry to achieve greater impact in both management and implementation.

A unique way to highlight how GRESB is integrated into real asset investment and decision-making considerations is to develop a Manager case study. The distinct challenges of a given asset portfolio or project can be impactfully conveyed – via the GRESB website – to further engage with investors and elevate sustainability progress.

Navigating changes in the 2024 GRESB Real Estate Standard

In 2024, the GRESB Real Estate Standard underwent significant updates that influence how participants and investors should interpret the Assessment results.

Key changes:

• New data and granular benchmarking: The shift to country-level benchmarking, instead of regional, allows for a more precise comparison of sustainability performance within specific markets.
• Concentrated changes: While the majority of the 2024 Standard remained stable, adjustments to key indicators such as energy efficiency, building certifications, and social impact metrics provide deeper insights into sustainability outcomes.

Learn more about these changes here. 

Why these changes matter:

• The updates are designed to drive more meaningful differentiation between participants, pushing the industry towards even higher standards of sustainability.
• A shift towards outcome-based scoring ensures that reported data is more reliable and consistent across all markets and asset types.

Independent studies have shown that companies and funds with higher GRESB scores tend to outperform their peers as investments, with both GRESB participation and performance being strong indicators of fund returns. While many participants are able to improve their scores year on year, this should not be expected by default. As GRESB’s requirements become more rigorous, score improvements will require meaningful advancements in practice and performance.

In GRESB’s early years, the primary focus was on improving data coverage, helping participants collect and disclose a greater share of their ESG data consistently. Today, the focus has evolved to enhancing sustainability performance, with an emphasis on increasing energy efficiency and reducing total emissions. The goal is to recognize achievements that lead to significant and lasting improvements in the real estate sector.

The GRESB Rating is based on your GRESB Score and how it ranks within the quintiles of all participants in the annual GRESB Assessment. The model is recalibrated each year to ensure accurate comparisons. Entities in the top 20% receive a GRESB 5 Star rating, representing the highest achievement, while those in the bottom quintile receive a GRESB 1 Star rating.

Because the GRESB Rating is calculated relative to the global performance of all reporting entities, it offers a clear benchmark of your standing on a global scale. A GRESB 5 Star rating signifies leadership in the industry, achieved by only 20% of participants annually. Entities awarded this rating can proudly use the GRESB Rating Logo in their communications to highlight their sustainability leadership.

The like-for-like consumption metrics provide a clear view of performance improvements across consistently reported assets over consecutive years.

Data coverage refers to the proportion of a portfolio’s total assets for which consumption data is available and reported. High data coverage means that a greater percentage of an entity’s portfolio is being measured and tracked, providing a more comprehensive and reliable basis for performance benchmarking and sustainability assessments.

Net zero targets are on the rise, with a 15% increase in participants setting net zero goals, now reaching 65%; of these, 29% of real estate participants have incorporated embodied carbon into their net zero plans. Notably, while 65% of real estate participants have a net zero target, only 28.6% of these entities have included embodied carbon in their target.

• Real Estate Standing Investment Sector Leaders
• Real Estate Development Sector Leaders

More comprehensive findings and analyses will be released in the coming weeks, providing an even clearer picture of the sector’s progress and challenges. For media looking for additional data, please reach out to us.