CSR

Since the Fannie Mae Green Rewards program launched in 2015, green financing has become a mainstay of commercial real estate. In addition to reducing the environmental impact of multifamily housing, the Green Rewards program creates a triple bottom line with increased cash flows, higher quality housing, and lower energy and water usage. With a high upside and little downside, the program is well worth multifamily borrowers’ consideration.

From California wildfires to rising sea levels to Florida hurricanes, the direct and indirect risks of climate change have grown in recent years, making a more substantial impact on the multifamily sector. As the need for sustainability becomes increasingly apparent, lawmakers and lenders have advanced programs and policies that show “going green” is a win-win.

In front of professionals and executives from more than 120 companies at the Real Estate Pride Roundtable in New York City in April, dozens of speakers shared honest perspectives on how far the commercial real estate industry has come on LGBTQ+ inclusion and how much more it has to go.

Environmental, social, and governance (ESG) programs do more for a company than meets the eye. This emerging framework, which reimagines how corporations interact with the world around them, can boost profitability and valuation. But did you know ESG programs also provide lesser-known benefits that are equally valuable to investors and other stakeholders?

A new update to Freddie Mac Green Advantage®, an attractive loan program in a rising interest rate environment, has added new incentives to going green to more multifamily borrowers than ever before. Freddie Mac recently announced a 15 bps pricing benefit to borrowers on top of any affordability benefits currently offered. At the same time, all previous affordability requirements were lifted, opening to door to more investors seeking to improve the sustainability of our communities.