Commercial Mortgage Lending – Green Projects Get Funded
Like it or not, environmentally conscious, or “green” principles have come to dominate the field of commercial real estate development and commercial mortgage lending. Green building and sustainable design are now the standard in new commercial construction and residential developments. And, with local and national governments getting greener all the time, look for energy and resource efficiency to become mandatory, with green mandates being placed directly into building codes. Funding sources such-as banks, Wall Street brokers, insurance companies and hedge funds, are following suite and these principles are rapidly becoming a part of the commercial mortgage industry.
The US Department of Energy’s Center for Sustainable Development recently reported that 40% of the entire world’s energy supply is used by buildings. That’s a huge number. And, in the United States, construction accounts for our largest manufacturing sector, representing a staggering 13% of US GDP and nearly 50% of total wealth creation. Even tiny percentage gains in efficiency can amount to massive over-all energy savings.
Both institutional and private lenders as well as the REIT, (Real Estate Investment Trust) hedge fund and private equity industries have all embraced the environmental building movement. Green is the color of money and green is the color of commercial mortgage construction lending now and into the future. Lenders love green construction because good for profits as-well-as being good for the planet. Energy costs money, resources cost money and cleaning up messes’ costs money. Saving energy, saving resources and sustaining a site all save money, during construction and throughout the operational life of the property. Lenders know that green means efficient and, when they evaluate a project for financing they want to be assured that the funds they invest will be used cost-effectively and that the building will be economically viable.
By:
About the Author:
Glenn Fydenkevez is President of MasterPlan Capital LLC, a dynamic, privately held commercial real estate investment bank, active nationwide in commercial real estate finance and investment.
Mr. Fydenkevez is a 20 year veteran of Wall Street and has served as an office at one of the worlds largest investment banks.
March 28 2011 | 101 Things That Everyone Should Know About Real Estate And Real Estate Investments | Comments Off