Climate. Change. Chance.

Abstract

Climate change is inevitable: storms, floods, heat islands in inner cities are consequences that the real estate industry is already facing today. However, the outlook for the future is not all gloomy. Scientists have calculated that investments in climate protection are worthwhile. In addi-tion, a change in society is emerging. New needs are emerging and customers expect climate-friendly living and working. It is therefore time to see climate change not only as a threat, but also as an opportunity to generate new products and access additional customer groups. To analyze the opportunities and risks of climate change on the real estate industry, the Competence Center Process Management Real Estate (CC PMRE) together with HTW Berlin and cctm real estate & infrastructure AG from Basel conducted the market analysis PMRE Monitor 2021: Climate. Change. Chance. 219 experts from the real estate industry and 140 students of real es-tate business courses from Germany participated in the study. Due to the particular relevance of climate change for future generations, students from international backgrounds were also surveyed. A total of 51 students from foreign colleges or universities with different specializations participated in the market analysis. The results of the study confirm that climate protection pays off in the real estate industry. Residential tenants are quite prepared to pay a premium for climate-neutral living. A rent increase of around 5.1% is accepted. There are also opportunities in terms of value appreciation. On aver-age, properties with climate protection aspects can achieve value increases of 8.6%. On the other hand, climate change also harbors risks. The participants in the study expect value losses of around 20.5% due to a poor CO2 balance or a climate risk situation. The article shows in detail which characteristics of a property lead to increases or also decreases in value and therefore demonstrates which climate protection measures real estate actors must take today.