EDGE Green Building Certification System to Offer Certification for Existing Buildings and Retrofits
EDGE has been expanded to include the full stage of a building’s life cycle. Now it’s possible to certify existing buildings and major renovations in addition to new construction.
The assessment of existing buildings and major renovations within the EDGE App attests to the building’s features, not its performance. In this way, EDGE serves as an asset rating instrument that defines whether a building has met the minimum standard of 20 percent less energy, 20 percent less water and 20 percent less embodied energy in materials compared to a base case building.
Broadening the scope of EDGE to include buildings of all vintages is beneficial to many different market players, including managers, banks and buyers:
- Portfolio owners and real estate investment management companies can certify their stock to prove the resource efficiency of their assets.
- Banks offering mortgages and financing energy retrofit projects can take a measurable approach to reducing the risk associated with property investments.
- Homebuyers purchasing a pre-existing home are assured of the quality of their investment and know that they are doing the right thing for the environment.
For those who are interested in certifying an existing building, the first step is to create your project within the EDGE app. For pricing and to request a quote, choose your country in the Certify section.
EDGE experts can provide technical assistance to clients in the certification of existing buildings. While this is not required, project owners may be interested in choosing one of the EDGE experts around the world to help expedite a project. For additional inquiries, email edge@ifc.org.
