Maximizing an asset’s value by understanding people’s priorities has always been fundamental to the business of real estate, and in response to climate change and a global pandemic, stakeholders are increasingly demanding that buildings and communities prioritize health and quality of life.
After more than five years of operating Fitwel, we understand the clear connection between the application of evidence-based strategies and meeting the demand of health-conscious building occupants. We also now see that implementing these strategies can boost economic value. Not only do these strategies improve occupant health and well-being but many of these interventions have a positive impact on tenant satisfaction and Net Promoter Score (NPS), while simultaneously mitigating climate-related risks, ultimately contributing to a more sustainable future. The positive impacts are multifaceted and interrelated.
There is overwhelming evidence that the built environment has a direct impact on human health, yet building owners and facility managers are often overwhelmed with the perceived cost and time of implementing health-promoting strategies and renovating interiors and amenities, particularly in existing buildings, with retrofitting costs ranging between $25 and $150 per square foot. But working within the context of existing buildings presents a big opportunity considering that, by 2040, Bloomberg estimates approximately two-thirds of the global building stock will consist of existing buildings.
With incremental improvements and the right, evidence-based measures, meeting the demand for healthy buildings within what already exists does not necessarily have to be such a high-cost undertaking. Fitwel presents numerous evidence-based strategies that can be easily implemented into all asset types and, notably, these are not capital intensive.
First things first, it’s important to understand what a healthy building is. In short, there are three core components: understanding the needs of building occupants and the surrounding community; using a set of design and operational strategies to optimize the space for their needs; and measuring the outcomes of the strategies to ensure that a building is having a positive impact on the health of those who live, work, learn, and socialize within it.
So what steps should building operators take to maximize their investment and yield the greatest impact on occupant health?
While identifying the best strategies to pursue will vary based on a building, community, and occupants’ needs, operational strategies – those that rely on building maintenance, operations, and programming – are some of the most cost-effective ways to promote health because they also help preserve a building and space, ultimately reducing the need for significant capital expenditures.
Community engagement is a critical way to directly address concerns and complaints, which can influence tenant retention and mitigate any unforeseen costs that could stem from community dissatisfaction. Occupant surveying is a reliable and efficient way to gather feedback on building design and operations. This type of collaboration allows project teams to connect with diverse stakeholders, enabling them to better address concerns, set priorities, and strengthen community engagement.
For facility managers and operators with limited budget or time, occupant surveying helps to prioritize the highest-priority issues. Addressing quality and operational concerns that meet occupant demands not only promotes health and well-being but also directly impacts workplace and resident satisfaction, which can translate to asset value through tenant retention.
Operational strategies, including indoor air quality, water quality, and general maintenance are some of the most important factors to promoting physical and mental health. Importantly, these factors greatly contribute to forming trust among occupants and improving their overall feelings of safety and well-being.
For example, developing and implementing an integrated, chemical-conscious pest management program is central to project upkeep and is a fundamental component of asset risk reduction, with pest issues frequently a source of litigation. Furthermore, pest management measures promote tenant retention through increases in tenant satisfaction as a result of reduced extermination needs. Interior maintenance also yields returns through tenant retention, which leads to an increase in occupation satisfaction as a result of 75 percent fewer pest control calls.
Similarly, integrating practices to reduce surrounding heat island effect, including planting and maintaining landscape, and addressing storm water runoff in outdoor built areas, can support decreased local temperatures, improved air quality, and enhanced connections to nature, with the impact on occupants being a decreased risk of stress, respiratory diseases, and other chronic conditions. In addition, well-maintained street-level greenery is associated with as much as a 7.8 percent rent premium for commercial buildings, according to a study out of MIT’s Real Estate Innovation Lab.
Design features such as visible staircases significantly increase the likelihood that people will take the stairs. One simple way to work around the high costs of moving a staircase is to simply post signage that indicates where stairs are located along with the health benefits of taking the stairs. One study found that individuals were more than 50 percent more likely to use the stairs when exposed to compelling signage.
By taking the right steps, today’s buildings can be transformed to meet the health and climate needs of tomorrow, and operational strategies offer a tried-and-true way to maximize impacts without outspending budgets.
Sara Karerat is the Managing Director of the Center for Active Design, where she leads the organization’s translation of public health research into actionable solutions that optimize the built environment for health, both domestically and internationally. During her time with CfAD, Karerat has authored several publications on the intersection of health and the built environment.
