Policy

As a trusted, nonpartisan advisor for local, regional, state, and federal policymakers, IMT continuously facilitates collaboration between public and private sector stakeholders to drive demand for high-performance buildings that unleash a variety of environmental, economic, and social benefits for cities across the U.S. Interested in learning more IMT’s work with cities to drive market demand for efficiency and high-performance buildings? Check out our blogs and resources below.

The Latest

Media Backgrounder: Unlocking Energy Savings in the Multifamily Housing Market

A new policy is taking hold across the U.S. that could help motivate owners of apartment buildings and condo complexes to improve the energy efficiency of their buildings, slashing as much as $9 billion from energy bills for 40 million Americans. This policy – energy benchmarking and disclosure – requires property owners to annually measure … Continued

Commercial Building Energy Rating and Disclosure Policies

Transparent energy ratings can help drive investment in energy efficiency by enabling tenants, investors, and lenders to compare building energy performance, creating demand for efficient buildings that have lower utility bills and/or operating costs. This fact sheet gives an introduction to commercial building energy rating and disclosure policies, now in effect in six U.S. cities … Continued

Energy Transparency in the Multifamily Housing Sector

Mirroring recent trends in other real estate sectors, the multifamily housing sector is subject to an increasing number of rules and regulations related to energy-performance benchmarking and disclosure. The goal of these new rules is to enable transparent building energy-performance information to drive energy efficiency improvements in multifamily housing that lower energy bills for residents; … Continued

Energy Transparency in the Multifamily Housing Sector: Executive Summary

Mirroring recent trends in other real estate sectors, the multifamily housing sector is subject to an increasing number of rules and regulations related to energy-performance benchmarking and disclosure. The goal of these new rules is to enable transparent building energy-performance information to drive energy efficiency improvements in multifamily housing that lower energy bills for residents; … Continued

Benchmarking Case Study: Mercer Court

Bellwether Housing owns and manages 29 apartment buildings that provide affordable housing for more than 3,000 Seattle residents, many of whom are low-income families and seniors. Bellwether aims to keep housing costs as low as possible for its residents, which means keeping energy bills in check. Through Portfolio Manager benchmarking, Bellwether found that annual utility … Continued

Benchmarking Case Study: Dexter Horton Building

When CB Richard Ellis and LaSalle Investment Management began working together in 2006 as the asset service and management providers for Seattle's historic Dexter Horton building, there was a mutual understanding that they would invest in the upgrades needed to make the building as efficient as possible. By using the EPA’s free benchmarking tool, ENERGY … Continued

Benchmarking Case Study: Bank of America Fifth Avenue Plaza

Hines first began measuring and rating, or benchmarking, the energy performance of Bank of America Fifth Avenue Plaza using the EPA’s free ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager tool in 2000. It was an eye-opening experience. For the first time, Hines was able to compare the building’s energy performance to similar buildings in the Seattle area as … Continued