Over 230 real estate projects in Romania have been certified to meet health, safety and sustainability standards and the pandemic has boosted the efforts of developers to meet targets for such ratings, according to Colliers.
Buildings that have the latest energy-saving features can become BREEAM or LEED certified, while for health and wellness, property owners can apply for WELL Health-Safety Rating.
“Overall, most certified projects are in Bucharest and its proximity - more than half, but there have been attained quite a few in regional hubs such as Timisoara, Cluj-Napoca or Iași, with the main constant accent on office, industrial and mixed-use schemes. However, we estimate that the competition among green building rating systems will intensify and there are still some large developers that may try to certify their retail or industrial portfolios, but also new entrants in specialized niches (such as office interiors) can arise,” says Oana Stamatin, Director Green Certification and Building Surveying at Colliers.
Starting 2021, Romania has enforced tighter requirements for building standards, in line with European Union directives.
All new buildings will have to comply with the nZEB standard that entails nearly zero energy consumption, with energy provided largely from renewable sources. This will apply to any kind of real estate asset, be it individual home, offices or shopping malls.
