NABERS for Apartments was launched in early June at the NABERS conference and presents an innovative new rating tool that will allow strata owners and residents to measure and compare their building’s energy and water use.

The tool will measure the energy and water use of communal areas in the building, such as gyms, lobbies and carparks, and score them according to a six-star rating scale. Three stars will represent average energy and water use, while six-stars will celebrate market leading practice.

Chris Duggan, president of Strata Community Australia NSW, expects that this tool will soon represent a “mark of quality” that recognises when a building is well-governed and sustainable in its operation. This could have a strong influence on the property market where apartments of four stars or more would attract higher sale prices and encourage the building sector to construct more sustainable apartments.

NABERS hopes that this new rating tool will provide potential buyers, residents and strata owners with an easy-to-understand guide of building sustainability that enable them to more clearly understand their building’s performance and make changes to reduce excessive energy and water consumption. It will allow consumers to easily seek out sustainable apartments and demand that their homes be more sustainable.

More information here