Weekend Edition: CRE – Why Everyone Needs Good NABERS
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Why is commercial real estate starting to recover and how does green building demand fit in?
The commercial real estate sector has been through some tough times, particularly since COVID, but maybe now it is starting to pick up and pick up with a renewed focus on meeting green credentials. So what exactly are those needs? And how is NAB helping? That's this week. The morning call from NAB with Phil Dobby. The weekend edition. So in the uh the building approvals numbers released this week by the ABS for March, if you look beyond the private housing sector that we talked about last weekend, of course, there is a surprise. Private sector commercial building approvals for the month rose 150% month on month, March twenty twenty five, which was also double March twenty twenty four in terms of the value of approvals.
So two point eight billion for the month. That's quite a number, isn't it? It's like in fact it's the highest ever, at least in absolute terms. For the twelve months to March, the total is a little shy of twenty billion. Okay, now that is only one percent up on twelve months before that. But it does show that commercial real estate is holding its own in terms of value, despite all this talk of less need for commercial real estate as more people work from home and retail moves online. But the demand is clearly still there, but will it stay? And how much of it is Is green commercial real estate. That's what we want to look at this week. Uh with Paul Leonard, he is Executive Business Lending Products at NAB, and Natasha Malcahee, who is the uh Pacific Region Director ESG, that's environmental, social and governance for those who need a refresher course on acronyms.
Uh Natasha joins us from CBRE, which is the the Global Commercial Real Estate Consulting and Investment Firm. So uh welcome to both of you. Let's start with Natasha. When we look at commercial real estate, what is green actually? What what defines a a a green building project?
Yeah, thanks Phil and thanks for having me. Um What defines a green billing project? Well, it's a building that's been designed, constructed and and is being operated to reduce negative environmental impacts, um, and hopefully provide some positive ones, um, both for the environment and the occupants of that building. So we've got, you know, a vast array of um acronyms in uh the sustainability world. I can rattle them off here for you, but um Really that's that's at the at the crux of it. We're trying to to do less harm and and and now increasingly trying to do good with commercial real estate.
I guess some of those acronyms relate to standards, don't they? 'Cause you've got to 'cause there's all this big fear of greenwashing, isn't there? Somebody can say, Oh yeah, sure we're green, but are they really? I mean are they just uh you know, ticking a few boxes to make a an initiative look as though it's meeting some environmental objectives, but in reality it's not.
Yeah. And look in Australia we've got a super high performing uh commercial real estate sector. Um and when you talk about those standards I think probably let's start with neighbours. Yeah. So I've got that.
What defines a ‘green’ commercial building and which standards (NABERS, Green Star, WELL) are used?
That's the National Australian Built Environment Rating System, if I got that right.
That really leads the world and and is currently being rolled out in the UK and in New Zealand because it's been such a success here in Australia. Uh and that provides a really objective sustainability benchmarking system for our commercial real estate here in Australia.
So what sort of things then? What wh what would be the key key elements that neighb that's N A B E R S by the way, because it sounds a bit like neighbours, doesn't it, which is another Australian invention, obviously. Everyone needs good neighbours.
Another another export to the UK. Exactly. So
everyone needs good neighbours, but in this case everyone needs a ne means a good building environment. So good
neighbours rating. So
what's what's what's a good what makes a good neighbours rating?
Uh so neighbours has uh a a number of different sustainability ratings. So energy water, waste, and indoor environment. And the most prominent one there is energy ratings.
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Chapters
8 chapters
1
Why is commercial real estate starting to recover and how does green building demand fit in?
0:01–2:49
2
What defines a ‘green’ commercial building and which standards (NABERS, Green Star, WELL) are used?
2:49–5:19
3
How does the NABERS rating system work and why is it becoming mandatory for large office leases?
5:19–9:08
4
What role does NAB play in financing green CRE projects – loans, green bonds, and sustainable‑linked products?
9:08–12:27
5
Why is retrofitting existing office towers considered the most sustainable investment strategy?
12:27–16:50
6
Which innovations (solar skins, EV charging, AI‑driven energy management) are reshaping Australian commercial buildings?
16:50–20:41
7
Who is driving the shift to net‑zero CRE – government, tenants, investors or landlords?
20:41–24:10
8
What is the outlook for Australia’s commercial real estate market and NAB’s long‑term green strategy?
24:10–27:43