REBNY Announces Creating & Capturing the Value of Real Estate Sustainability in NYC, a New Energy Efficiency Continuing Education Program for Brokers and Salespersons

Daylong course on May 14th will train real estate brokers in effective methods to make buildings more efficient, helping New York State and City achieve their nation-leading climate goals

The Real Estate Board of New York (REBNY), in collaboration with the Mayor’s Office of Sustainability, the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA), Environmental Defense Fund (EDF), the Institute for Market Transformation (IMT), and the U.S. Department of Energy’s Better Buildings Initiative announced the launch of Creating & Capturing the Value of Real Estate Sustainability in NYC, an energy efficiency and sustainability continuing education program for New York real estate agents and salespersons.

As global climate change continues to impact human populations and natural ecosystems, Creating & Capturing the Value of Real Estate Sustainability in NYC is another example of the continued work by New York City’s real estate community to ensure that New York remains a leader in sustainability efforts.

Starting in May, this daylong continuing education course will be held on Tuesday, May 14th at REBNY’s headquarters in Midtown. The course, which will be taught by trained instructors from the Institute for Market Transformation as well as other industry experts, will help licensed agents and salespersons represent their clients and customers more effectively, as well as use their unique position to help building owners and tenants use their spaces more efficiently and reduce energy consumption. NY Green Bank, a New York State-sponsored, specialized financial entity working with the private sector to increase investments into New York’s clean energy markets, will also participate and present an overview of its new commercial tenant energy efficiency financing product.

The course will complement state and citywide sustainability initiatives, helping New York State achieve Governor Cuomo’s nation-leading goal of a 100 percent carbon neutral economy by 2040 and Mayor de Blasio’s OneNYC goal of reducing citywide greenhouse gas emissions 80 percent by 2050.

Agents from many of the largest residential and commercial real estate brokerages in New York City have agreed to participate in the course including Cushman & Wakefield, Vornado, CBRE, The Durst Organization, JLL, and FirstService Residential.

The course will explain how once-niche green concepts are evolving into high-performance standards across office, retail, and industrial segments, and what real estate professionals can do to take advantage of long- and short-term sustainability trends and best practices.

COURSE TAKEAWAYS

• Learn about the market demand for sustainability

• Advise clients on energy efficiency

• Master the financial benefits of energy-efficient buildings for landlords, tenants, building owners, and brokers

• Develop skills to assess how energy efficiency impacts a building’s economic performance

• Explore commonly-used resources are available for industry professionals

• Understand how environmental policies impact commercial transactions

• Earn 7.5 hours of continuing education credit

“This course is a great way to raise awareness among real estate professionals and in turn, teach the public how to make buildings more energy efficient and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. This course and programs like it are critical to meeting the New York’s ambitious climate goals,” said John H. Banks, President of the Real Estate Board of New York. “Members of the Real Estate Board of New York are leaders in New York's environmental efforts and we are proud to help educate our agents and ultimately their customers how to achieve a more environmentally friendly New York.”

Alicia Barton, President and CEO, New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) said, “Under Governor Cuomo’s leadership, NYSERDA is driving market transformation and New York State is actively leading the way in reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Ensuring that real estate professionals have the knowledge, resources, and tools to participate in the growing clean energy economy will help us achieve our goals while providing all New Yorkers with the quality and comfort that comes with energy efficient and sustainable buildings.”

“Tenants are demanding more efficient buildings that save money and emit less pollution in their city,” said Mark Chambers, Director of the Mayor’s Office of Sustainability. “This initiative equips brokers with information on energy efficiency, helping them better serve New Yorkers while advancing ambitious citywide climate goals.”

“Sustainability is a very important part of what we do day-to-day, and Cushman & Wakefield’s agents and sales professionals need to stay up-to-date on the most current trends to help our clients reach their clean energy goals,” said John Santora, Vice Chairman, President of Tri-State Region for Cushman & Wakefield. “It is not only critical to the long-term success of our business, but for our city as well.”

“With nearly 70 percent of carbon emissions in New York City coming from buildings, taking energy efficiency and sustainability into account at the earliest stage in transactions is critical,” said Marc Rauch, Senior Specialist, New York Clean Energy Real Estate at Environmental Defense Fund. “This unprecedented initiative by the Real Estate Board of New York gives brokers the tools to increase their own competitiveness by showcasing the environmental and economic benefits of high performing buildings and helping customers save energy, cut pollution and ultimately contribute to a better quality of life for all New Yorkers.”

“Energy efficiency measures improve building environments, reduce building operating costs, and decrease greenhouse gas emissions," said Alfred Griffin, NY Green Bank President. “By providing financing solutions where qualified measures can be implemented effectively without upfront cost to tenants, and where repayment of the capital funding such improvements is paid out of ongoing operating savings, NY Green Bank is facilitating the deployment of these important energy efficiency projects.” 

“The case for New York City’s commercial real estate brokers to become well-versed in high-performing building practices has never been stronger,” said Chris Brown, Director of Private Sector Engagement at the Institute for Market Transformation (IMT). “More cities, investors, and businesses are demanding properties that optimize energy use, improve occupant health, and lower carbon emissions. Energy efficiency addresses all of these concerns. IMT’s course provides commercial brokers with foundational understanding on the immense business benefits of high-performance buildings. We thank REBNY, the Department of Energy, NYSERDA, EDF, and other participating groups for their collaboration and leadership on this important initiative.”   

“Brokers are the drivers of so many decisions which impact performance for the life of a lease.  All real estate professionals, starting with the brokers who originate the deal, benefit from understanding the real value that sustainable policies and practices have for both owners and tenants,” said Dana Schneider, Managing Director, Energy and Sustainability at JLL. “JLL is proud to participate in this program.”

“REBNY’s new education program is yet another example of how the real estate industry is committed to helping New York City achieve its climate goals,” said Jonathan Flaherty, Co-Chair of REBNY’s Sustainability Committee and Senior Director, Sustainability and Utilities at Tishman Speyer. “Tishman Speyer knows that sustainability is critical to our success and we’re pleased that REBNY is launching this new program at such a critical time.”

Vornado is proud to support the launch of REBNY’s new real estate sustainability program. It is incredibly important to communicate to tenants the value of sustainability programs, both before and after a tenant takes occupancy. Through REBNY’s new course, brokers will help tenants understand how to design, build, and manage spaces that promote energy efficiency, resource conservation and active work environments,” said Daniel Egan, Senior Vice President, Sustainability & Utilities, Vornado Realty Trust.

“In this day and age, it is in a building’s best interest to incorporate energy efficiency into both short-term and long-term operations planning. Gone are the days of replacing equipment with its "for-like" equivalent. Every property in the FirstService Residential New York portfolio receives an energy report card annually through FSEnergy. By providing these buildings with such valuable information, we can increase efficiency for those properties, cut overall cost, and reduce GHG emissions—which is a ‘win win’ for everyone,” said Kelly Dougherty, Director, Energy Management at FirstService Residential of New York.

In 2016, REBNY launched a successful energy efficiency and sustainability training pilot program for New York building managers, superintendents, operators and engineers.

To register for Creating & Capturing the Value of Real Estate Sustainability in NYC, please visit: go.rebny.com/SustainableBroker