NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REAL ESTATE INVESTMENT MANAGERS
RISING EXPECTATIONS FOR
TRANSPARENCY
IN COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE
16
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REAL ESTATE INVESTMENT MANAGERS
T
he average person spends 90% of their time indoors. The average building is designed
to leave 20% of its occupants dissatisfied with indoor environmental conditions. Each
of us easily experiences perhaps a half dozen buildings per week. Consequently, over
the course of a normal work week, each of us has a nearly 100% chance of experiencing
uncomfortable or even unhealthy conditions in even the best managed properties.
1
These
statistics are not new. However, changes in customer expectations and technology are
making them more visible, relevant, and actionable for asset managers.
Let's start with changes in expectations. Consumers
increasingly believe that they can quickly find information
about businesses and even specific properties. This is fed
by consumer-facing tools such as Zillow, Yelp, TripAdvisor,
or WalkScore. These instantly available applications have
conditioned consumers to expect that they can type in
an address and get a range of relevant information, from
personal experiences to environmental performance
metrics. In fact, for many consumers, it has reached the
point where the absence of information is perceived as
a risk factor and, say, 25% of poor reviews on TripAdvisor
may be enough to send someone searching for a different
hotel. Over time, the availability of these tools shapes
expectations about the type of information that should
be available about a business or a property.
The combination of changing expectations and readily
accessible tools to share experiences challenges long-
standing practices in the property industry. For example,
buildings are typically designed and operated to provide
thermal comfort for approximately 75% of occupants. The
net result is that, on average, buildings are designed and
operated to leave roughly a quarter of occupants less
than satisfied with indoor temperature. This is considered
Chris Pyke, Ph.D.,
Chief Strategy Officer, ACLIMA INC
Opportunities and Challenges
for Asset Owners and Managers