LBC1.2: Operational Building Certifications
Maximum Score
0 points
Prefill
Not eligible
Validation
Automatic
Does the lender track Operational Green Building Certification data for standing assets in its loan portfolio?
Assessment Instructions
Intent: What is the purpose of this indicator?
This Indicator intends to assess the lender’s use of green building certifications for building operation and maintenance. Green building certificates provide a measure of asset quality that may provide benefits for occupants, society and the environment. Building certifications also serve as an additional layer of transparency and accountability to inform investors and occupiers on the sustainability performance of an asset.
Input: How do I complete this metric?
Participants can optionally report their loan portfolio building certifications and their corresponding certification years at the asset level through the GRESB Asset Portal.
This indicator is solely focused on the certificates obtained for operating buildings. Building certifications at the time of design / construction and interior are reported separately in LBC1.1.
Lenders are benchmarked based on green building certifications awarded prior to the official GRESB submission deadline.
Any green building certification within the loan portfolio that was awarded after the official GRESB submission deadline will not be included in the benchmark.
Pre-assessments or other forms of pre-certification received prior to project completion or the end of the performance period (whichever is relevant) are not valid. These types of preliminary assessments provide an understanding of how a project is likely to perform against the criteria of a specific certification system. These can be undertaken by third parties, consultants, developers, or as part of a pre-certification process to indicate progress. However, they are not equivalent to a final certified outcome.
In case of periodic certification renewal, report the latest certification year. If an asset consists of multiple buildings or has achieved multiple certifications for different parts of the asset, participants may report a consolidated Building Certification Year using the following calculation:
Consolidated Certification Year of Certification A =
[('Level 1' Floor Area Certified/Total Floor Area Certified by Cert. A)* Certification Year Level 1] +
[('Level 2' Floor Area Certified/Total Floor Area Certified by Cert A)* Certification Year Level 2]
Specific rules apply for certain certifications:
NABERS Multi-Rating: participants can only report it for assets that have attained at least three out of four NABERS ratings (Energy, Water, IEQ, and Waste). Given that the list of property types eligible to obtain NABERS ratings evolves over time, participants are encouraged to refer to the NABERS official website for alignment on the latest updates.
LEED Zero: participants must have obtained at least three out of four LEED Zero certifications (Energy, GHG, Water and/or Waste).
Arc Performance Certificates – 3: participants must have submitted at least three out of five categories (Energy, Water, Waste, Transportation, and Human Experience). Scores are then weighted into an overall, combined Arc Performance Score.
Refer to the Scheme Lists page for the complete list of recognized building certification schemes, which will remain eligible for the 2026 and 2027 assessments.
GRESB updated its building certification evaluation criteria in December 2024 and retired the existing criteria in June 2025. All certification schemes must meet the revised evaluation criteria to be recognized for the 2028 GRESB Standard. For more information about the scheme re-evaluation process and status, see here.
Terminology
Green building certificate
Recognition that a project has received a green building rating. A certificate indicates the name and location of the project, version of the rating system, date of certification, and level of recognition.
Green building certification for the operational building
Green building certificate for operational buildings, obtained based on actual operational data for a specific period and the way the building is operated. Typically, these green building certificates certify that individual assets are operated in ways that are consistent with independently developed sustainability-related criteria.
Level of certification
The level achieved with successful completion of the rating scheme.
Number of certified assets
The number of assets that were awarded a green building certificate before or during the reporting year (excluding pre-assessments or other forms of pre-certification).
Performance period
The period during which the performance of a building is assessed to demonstrate compliance with the established criteria of a building certification.
Scheme name
The name of the certification scheme.
Sub-scheme name
A Green Building Certificate’s sub-category to a Scheme name used to certify a particular property type and/or to specify the type of building certificate (whether a Green Building Certificate is an Operational Green Building Certificate or a New Construction Green Building Certificate).
Validation: What evidence is required?
This indicator is subject to automatic validation. No evidence is required. Refer to the page below for guidance on how to resolve automatic validation errors and warnings.
Scoring
This indicator is not currently scored, and is used to inform future benchmarking considerations.
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