Nearly a thousand Class A office buildings on the Polish real estate market are certified. BREEAM, LEED, WELL – these designations appear increasingly frequently in office space descriptions. But is certification real savings for tenants, or just a marketing element that raises rent?
Energy Savings: Facts and Figures
Market observations and JLL research clearly show: certified buildings offer real energy savings. The analysis found that buildings with BREEAM or LEED certificates can achieve energy savings of 25-39 percent compared to non-certified buildings.
For a company renting 3,000 square meters of office space, this difference can mean tens of thousands of Polish zlotys in annual savings. This is particularly important in the context of the Polish market, where service charges represent a significant portion of the total rental cost.
Does Higher Rent Pay Off?
A natural question arises: doesn't higher rent in a certified building offset energy savings? European market research – including a JLL report from July 2024 titled "The next frontier for green building certifications" – shows that certified buildings can achieve rental premiums of 5.5-6 percent, and sometimes up to 7-11 percent compared to non-certified buildings.
However, when we sum the total operational cost – higher rent minus lower service and energy charges – tenants often pay the same or even less than in traditional buildings. This means certification is not just a trend, but a strategy for reducing real operational costs.
Benefits Beyond Financial Savings
Building certification wouldn't be so popular if it were solely about energy savings. Equally important are additional benefits:
Employer Branding: Employers increasingly promote the fact that they rent space in a certified building as part of their ESG strategy. Employees, particularly from the millennial and Gen Z generations, prefer to work for companies with clear commitment to sustainable development.
ESG Reporting: Compliance with ESG reporting requirements is becoming reality. The CSRD Directive (Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive) from 2025 requires large companies (250+ employees, turnover 40 million EUR+) to report according to European Sustainability Reporting Standards. From 2027, the obligation extends to smaller enterprises.
Better Working Conditions: Certified buildings typically offer better air quality, natural light, ergonomic solutions, and cycling infrastructure. This directly impacts employee productivity and satisfaction.
CSRD: New Requirement, New Motivation
Implementation of the CSRD Directive changes the equation for many companies. ESG reporting will no longer be optional for large organizations. Renting an office in a certified building automatically transfers part of the responsibility for sustainable development to the property owner.
For the tenant, this means: easier compliance with reporting requirements, ready-to-submit CO2 emission data for auditors and investors, and participation in a solid industry benchmark.
Checklist: Is a Certified Building Right for Your Company?
- CSRD Requirements: Does your company need to report according to CSRD or plan to do so in the future?
- ESG Strategy: Is sustainable development part of your company's image and marketing strategy?
- Large Number of Employees: The more employees, the greater the total savings on service and energy charges.
- Long-term Lease: Certification pays off more with 5+ year contracts, where savings accumulate.
- Talent Recruitment: Is location in a certified building an important element of employer branding?
- Industry: Companies from ESG-sensitive sectors (finance, technology, cosmetics) prefer certified buildings.
- Location Access: Does the certified building offer your preferred location and public transportation access?
Summary: More Than a Trend
Building certificates have stopped being a marker of luxury. They have become a tool for optimizing operational costs, meeting reporting requirements, and building employer image. For companies counting on further increasing ESG requirements – and such requirements will continue to increase – renting a certified building is no longer a question of whether, but when.
Tenant advisors, acting on behalf of companies, recommend conducting a total cost of ownership analysis for each potential location. Sometimes a certified building with 10 percent higher rent will actually be cheaper than a traditional building when we consider all variables.
The history of the question "trend or reality?" speaks clearly: certification is a reality that has definitively changed the office market to be more sustainable and economically efficient.