"nWert", GLS Gemeinschaftsbank eG's sustainability rating tool for real estate, has been recognised by the German Sustainable Building Council (DGNB) as a sustainability rating. At the same time, GLS Bank recognises the DGNB certificate as proof when granting financing. This was announced by Dr. Christine Lemaitre of the DGNB and Dr. Matthias Morgenstern, GLS ImmoWert, on the occasion of Expo Real 2021 in Munich.
"The recognition of nValue by the DGNB is a nice confirmation of our way of thinking about sustainability in a really comprehensive way and developing a robust but also valid assessment system for it," says Dr Matthias Morgenstern from GLS ImmoWert GmbH. The net value of a building reflects sustainability at a high level of aggregation and contributes to the decision on financing. It also provides the bank's customers with an objective assessment of the building at a glance. They receive a report on the nValue with a presentation of the strengths and potentials of the building and thus have a roadmap to achieve even better sustainability. In total, the Bank's colleagues have already audited over 800 projects.
"As the largest social-ecological bank in Germany, we aim to value real estate not only in monetary terms. We also want to know what social and ecological impact the properties we lend to have," says Jan Köpper, Head of Impact Transparency at GLS Bank. That is why GLS Bank has developed the tool "nWert". With this tool, a transparent, measurable and comparable sustainability rating can be calculated specifically for real estate and the lending process.
"With the recognition of its sustainability rating by the DGNB, GLS Bank is building an important bridge towards greater uniformity in the assessment of sustainable building projects as a basis for their financing," says Dr Christine Lemaitre, Executive Director of the DGNB. "With almost 8000 award-winning building and neighbourhood projects, DGNB certification has established itself as the central sustainability standard in the construction sector in Germany and beyond in recent years. The recognition of GLS Bank's sustainability rating is a valuable building block here that ultimately benefits customers."
The recognition is reciprocal. If a customer approaches GLS Bank with a DGNB certificate and a request for financing, this certificate is equally proof for GLS Bank of the sustainable properties of the building.
For about four years now, GLS Bank has been determining the nValue for real estate in addition to the market value and the mortgage lending value. The degree to which the building complies with a sustainable model is determined by analysing documents, interviewing people with knowledge of the property and visiting the site. Around 50 indicators are collected and converted into a score from 0 to 100 %.
You can find more information on the GLS Bank's nWert audit here:
gls.co.uk/corporate-institutions/industries/housing/sustainable-property/
Source: PM from DGNB and GLS dated 28.10.2021
Keywords:
DE-News, DGNB, Sustainable management
