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Refurbishing houses is considered a key measure to improve the energy efficiency of the built environment. However, little is known about the implementation and outcome of housing renovation for energy upgrades in the Vietnamese practice. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the energy performance of the current housing stock in Vietnam and the potential to reduce energy use in households.

The paper is based on a survey with 153 respondents in three major climatic regions of Vietnam. The survey focusses on building characteristics, environmental performance, energy performance and refurbishment activities. Data collected from the survey were statistically analysed to give insight into the current performance of the housing stock and its energy saving potential.

This paper concludes that building design and construction, particularly the building envelope, have a significant influence on the occupants’ comfort. However, the energy consumption in houses is not statistically associated with building design and indoor environment. It is suggested that financial status and occupants’ behaviour currently have a strong influence on the household energy use. The survey also showed that refurbishment improves the housing performance, especially if improving the indoor environment was one of the drivers.

There are very few studies on energy use in households in Vietnam, especially with regards to actual energy consumption. This paper brings insights into the actual energy consumption and reveals the “performance gap” in Vietnamese housing stock.

This study aims to examine the concept of innovative technologies and identify their impacts on the environmental sustainability of commercial properties in South Africa. This slow adoption is attributed to South Africa’s energy building regulation, SANS 204, which does not promote energy-conscious commercial property development. Furthermore, it was observed that buildings waste significant amounts of energy as electrical appliances are left on when they are not in use, which can be prevented using innovative technologies.

The researchers attempted to evaluate the impact of innovative technologies through an overarching constructivist mixed-method paradigm. The research was conducted using a multi-case study approach on green buildings which had innovative technologies installed. The data collection took the form of online, semi-structured interviews, where thematic analysis was used to identify emergent themes from the qualitative data, and descriptive statistics was used to evaluate the quantitative data.

It was found that implementing innovative technologies to reduce the energy consumption of commercial buildings could achieve energy savings of up to 23%. Moreover, a commercial building’s carbon footprint can be reduced to 152CO2/m2 and further decreased to 142CO2/m2 through the adoption of a Photovoltaics plant. The study further found that innovative technologies improved employee productivity and promoted green learning and practices.

This research demonstrated the positive impact innovative technologies have on energy reduction and the sustainability of commercial properties. Hence, facility managers should engage innovative technologies when planning a commercial development or refurbishment.

While most efforts to combat climate change are focussed on energy efficiency and substitution of fossil fuels, growth in the built environment remains largely unquestioned. Given the current climate emergency and increasing scarcity of global resources, it is imperative that we address this “blind spot” by finding ways to support required services with less resource consumption.

There is now long overdue recognition to greenhouse gas emissions “embodied” in the production of building materials and construction, and its importance in reaching targets of net zero carbon by 2050. However, there is a widespread belief that we can continue to “build big”, provided we incorporate energy saving measures and select “low carbon materials” – ignoring the fact that excessive volume and area of buildings may outweigh any carbon savings. This is especially the case with commercial real estate.

As the inception and planning phases of projects offer most potential for reduction in both operational and embodied carbon, we must turn our attention to previously overlooked options such as “build nothing” or “build less”. This involves challenging the root cause of the need, exploring alternative approaches to meet desired outcomes, and maximising the use of existing assets. If new build is required, this should be designed for adaptability, with increased stewardship, so the building stock of the future will be a more valuable and useable resource.

This points to the need for increased understanding and application of the principles of strategic asset management, hitherto largely ignored in sustainability circles, which emphasize a close alignment of assets with the services they support.

Arguably, as the built environment consumes more material resources and energy than any other sector, its future configuration may be critical to the future of people and the planet. In this regard, this paper seeks to break new ground for deeper exploration.

This article aims to establish a dynamic Energy Performance Contract (EPC) risk allocation model for commercial buildings based on the theory of Incomplete Contract. The purpose is to fill the policy vacuum and allow stakeholders to manage risks in energy conservation management by EPCs to better adapt to climate change in the building sector.

The article chooses a qualitative research approach to depict the whole risk allocation picture of EPC projects and establish a dynamic EPC risk allocation model for commercial buildings in China. It starts with a comprehensive literature review on risks of EPCs. By modifying the theory of Incomplete Contract and adopting the so-called bow-tie model, a theoretical EPC risk allocation model is developed and verified by interview results. By discussing its application in the commercial building sector in China, an operational EPC three-stage risk allocation model is developed.

This study points out the contract incompleteness of the risk allocation for EPC projects and offered an operational method to guide practice. The reasonable risk allocation between building owners and Energy Service Companies can realize their bilateral targets on commercial building energy-saving benefits, which makes EPC more attractive for energy conservation.

Existing research focused mainly on static risk allocation. Less research was directed to the phased and dynamic risk allocation. This study developed a theoretical three-stage EPC risk allocation model, which provided the theoretical support for dynamic EPC risk allocation of EPC projects. By addressing the contract incompleteness of the risk allocation, an operational method is developed. This is a new approach to allocate risks for EPC projects in a dynamic and staged way.

This study aims to examine the challenges for green retrofitting implementation in existing residential buildings to lower the running cost and achieve a better energy-efficient system.

This study adopted a qualitative approach by interviewing conveniently selected 16 construction professionals, made up of architects, quantity surveyors and engineers. Data received were analysed using the content analysis method.

The findings revealed that the main barriers to incorporating green retrofitting in the existing residential buildings as the nature of the existing structures, limited knowledge, not being a priority and high costs involved in the process. Moreover, other factors influencing property developers’ decision to apply energy-efficient principles in a residential home include cost (initial capital and maintenance), level of knowledge, nature of the climate in the area, local legislation, more independence and increasing the property’s market value and environmental aspect.

This study is limited to South Africa; thus, the literature available was limited.

People’s perceptions, either wrong or correct, affect their ability to make an informed decision to adopt green retrofitting principles, thereby denying them the opportunity to reap the associated benefits. Therefore, there is an urgent need for the construction industry stakeholders and government to increase educational opportunities for property owners on the importance of green retrofitting.

This study provides the occupants with the possible barriers and problem areas with implementing these principles. They will thus make an informed decision when implementing sustainable design methods.

This study investigates the barriers and drivers of using green methods and technologies (GMTs) in supportive educational buildings (SEBs) in South Africa, and assesses their impact on the circular economy (CE) in achieving net-zero carbon goals. While there has been extensive literature on green building technologies, there is limited research on the barriers and drivers of using GMT in SEBs, as well as their impact on the circular economy (CE) in achieving net-zero carbon goals.

This study adopts an interpretivist approach with an ontological basis, using an overarching case study of a SEB at the University of Cape Town (UCT). Semistructured interviews were conducted with executive UCT management, and a field survey of a UCT supportive education building was performed.

At UCT, multiple GMTs have been installed across various buildings to enhance monitoring and management of water and energy consumption. Moreover, initiatives to positively influence student behavior, such as water and energy-saving campaigns around UCT premises, have been introduced. The findings further indicate that UCT has recently emphasized the implementation of GMTs, resulting in improved resource efficiency, CE practices and progress toward achieving net-zero carbon targets for supportive education buildings and the university as a whole.

This research highlights the positive impact of GMTs on a SEB’s CE and net-zero carbon operations. As a result, facility managers should consider incorporating GMTs when planning the development or refurbishment of SEBs.

The work described below compares three very different residential typologies in terms of their energy performance in operation. The purpose of this paper is to identify the influence of building typologies and corresponding urban morphologies on operational energy demand and the potential for building integrated energy production.

Two of the typologies studied are apartment buildings while the third comprises single-family homes located on small plots. An important factor under consideration is the insertion into the respective urban design configuration so that mutual shading of the buildings and the ensuing impact on energy performance is evaluated. Heating and cooling demands, as well as the potential for building-integrated electricity production were investigated for four different European climates in a dynamic thermal simulation environment.

The results show that the investigated apartment buildings have a lower operational energy demand than the single-family home in all climates. This advantage is most pronounced in cool climate conditions. At the same time the investigated single-family home has the highest potential for building integrated renewable energy production in all climates. This advantage is most pronounced in low latitudes.

The study builds up on generic buildings that are based on a common urban grid and are easily comparable and scalable into whole city districts. Still, these buildings are planned into such detail, that they provide fully functional floor plans and comply with national building regulations. This approach allows us to draw conclusions on the scale of individual buildings and at an urban scale at the same time.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the role of distinct types of heating technology and their price impact in German residential real estate markets, considering a wide range of other housing market determinants. The authors aim to test and to verify specifically, whether the obsolescence of heating technology leads to a significant price discount and whether higher technological standards (and environmental friendliness) come with a price premium on the market.

The authors create housing market models for rental and sales segments by constructing generalized additive models with explicit multi-layered spatial components. To elaborate a profound and contemporary answer using these models, the authors perform large-sample regression analyses based on more than 400,000 observations covering German residential properties in 2015.

First and foremost, the heating system indeed shows significant explanatory importance for measuring housing rents and purchasing price. Second, the authors find that it makes a difference whether clean “green” technologies are implemented or whether “brown” systems with obsolete technology or fossil energy sources is on hand. Ultimately, the authors conclude that while low energy consumption indeed comes with a price premium, this needs to be interpreted together with the property’s heating type, as housing markets seem to outweigh the “green premium” by “brown discounts” if low energy consumption figures are powered by a certain type of heating technology system.

Aside of a possible omitted variable bias, the main research limitation is constituted by the integration of asking prices in the analysis, as actual transaction prices are not systematically transparent on national level in Germany. Limitations are discussed at the end of the paper.

This work supports investors who face the challenge of making environmental- and energy-related decisions as well as appraisers who deliver financial fundamentals for such. Third, the paper supports both asset managers as well as investment strategists in argumentation pro-environmental investments beyond all ecological necessity.

This paper contributes to the current discussion on climate change and the eclectic role of real estate in this context. The authors deliver evidence on pricing effects as a measure of socioeconomic acceptance of progressive heating technology and environmental friendliness as an imperative of twenty-first century societies.

This is the first study on “green premiums” or “brown discounts” that includes heating technology as a potential and distinct driver of value and rents. It is a contemporary contribution and delivers original information on the quantitative impact of contemporary and anachronistic technology in heating to researchers as well as investors and appraisers.

This paper aims to analyze climate resilience and adaptation of cultural heritage buildings from the perspectives of both public authorities and residents. From a user-oriented domestication perspective, it investigates what barriers the residents meet when trying to make their homes more sustainable and resilient to climate impacts.

The analysis is based on a qualitative case study: an apartment building from 1890 in an area with protected heritage buildings in Oslo, Norway. The building is in need of renovation to withstand the impacts of climate strain. Expert interviews with public authorities, and interviews/focus groups with residents in the case study, form the empirical basis of the results.

The findings reveal that the residents find the public authorities’ sustainability measures confusing and lack information on what to do. The residents have domesticated an environmentally friendly lifestyle, but they are not very concerned about the cultural heritage status of their building. On the contrary, the protection clause is experienced as a barrier against renovation, and the windows are a special concern.

Better cooperation between actors representing public authorities could result in easier access to information and less confusing advices for sustainability in cultural heritage buildings.

This paper gives new insights on how information from public authorities is perceived by residents, and thus indicates how policy measures for cultural heritage and sustainability should be communicated to achieve public understanding.