Hardwood Floors, Marble Countertops, and a High Energy Efficiency Rating

Anyone buying a building, leasing an office, or renting a condo is going to ask the usual questions: price, square footage, utilities, and parking fees. But what if buildings were also required to disclose a measure of how energy-efficient they are? Would consumers shop around, alongside great hardwood floors and natural lighting, for top-notch “energy use intensity”?

We are about to enter that era. New York City, San Francisco, Seattle, and Austin have all passed laws requiring buildings to start measuring and providing this information. The owners of large commercial and residential properties in New York, spanning some 2 billion square feet of real estate, began handing over their data this summer. And some buildings in Seattle and San Francisco will follow suit as of the first week of October.