Principal, Longevity Seek to Scale Building Retrofits

Principal Asset Management and Longevity Partners have launched REsponsible Asset Solutions, a platform intended to help institutional real estate owners evaluate and execute building decarbonization projects while meeting their return requirements.

The platform, known as RAS, will assess potential projects at the asset level, then use standardized contracts and investment criteria to help owners carry them out across portfolios.

The firms cited rooftop solar and measures to reduce buildings’ energy demand as examples. They said their approach had been tested across 14 institutional properties, where they identified projects that met investment return thresholds. Once fully implemented, those projects are projected to cut energy consumption by 37% and add more than $10 million to the properties’ value at exit.

“Many institutional investors have moved beyond understanding the need to decarbonize assets and increasingly recognize that building performance affects asset value, operating income, financing conditions, tenant demand, and long-term competitiveness,” said Rajee Harris, Principal’s chief business officer of private markets.

Principal said its real estate platform managed $108 billion as of June 30. Longevity Partners, founded in 2015, operates in more than 45 countries.