ASBEC calls for a nationally consistent framework to assess the sustainability of residential buildings, set minimum standards, benchmark building performance, and communicate value.

This is intended to help homeowners to understand and value sustainability elements, and enable industry to deliver better quality, more sustainable products and services to renovators and homebuyers.

A single framework, consistently applied across jurisdictions, will reduce complexity and confusion for industry and consumers alike. This will result in better sustainability outcomes, and it will encourage continuous improvement and innovation.

ASBEC has identified three key elements of an effective framework

• Set minimum regulatory performance standards in new buildings for each of building energy, thermal comfort, water and other sustainability issues
• Provide benchmarks for market comparison of best practice sustainability performance; and
• Deliver communication messages explaining the value of sustainability features to renovators and homebuyers, including at point of sale and lease.

Any move to a nationally consistent framework will require coordination across all levels of government as well as with industry.  Key ASBEC recommendations for each of these stakeholders are;

Key recommendations for Governments

• Governments, in partnership with industry, explore improved minimum performance standards for new buildings covering building energy, thermal comfort, water efficiency, and other sustainability issues
• Governments implement nationally consistent requirements for determining the sustainability performance of housing in the National Construction Code to ensure requirements are harmonised across jurisdictions.
• Governments to work with industry to act on the findings of the National Energy Efficient Building Project to improve compliance with energy efficiency requirements in the National Construction Code, build skills and industry capacity and lower compliance costs

Key recommendations for Industry

• Industry, through ASBEC or a similar forum, establish voluntary benchmarks for best practice aligned to existing regulatory requirements
• Industry to develop an approach to increasing public awareness and understanding of the framework, and communicating the benefits of sustainable housing
• Industry to lead, in agreement with government, development of a pathway towards ratings disclosure at point of sale and lease, including a repository of rating information (compliance and performance) for rating re-use, analysis and communication of value

Read the full National Framework for Residential Ratings – Policy Platform

Further detail is provided in the National Framework for Residential Ratings – Discussion Paper