The regulatory landscape is shifting
The Dutch government has made its intentions clear: in the coming years, all new commercial buildings must meet near-zero energy standards. But waiting until the deadline is a costly mistake. Buildings constructed without high sustainability credentials will face significant value depreciation as the market shifts toward green assets.
BREEAM Excellent certification is not just an environmental badge — it is a financial strategy. Buildings with BREEAM Excellent ratings command 8-12% higher rental premiums and experience 15% lower vacancy rates compared to non-certified equivalents.
What BREEAM Excellent actually requires
Achieving BREEAM Excellent means scoring above 70% across ten categories including energy, water, materials, waste, pollution, health and wellbeing, land use, transport, management, and innovation. It requires deliberate design decisions from day one — not retrofitted add-ons.
At Cornerstone, we have delivered 12 BREEAM Excellent certified buildings in the past five years. The key is integrating sustainability into the design brief from the earliest stages, not treating it as a compliance exercise at the end.
The cost argument has changed
Five years ago, achieving BREEAM Excellent added 5-8% to construction costs. Today, with improved supply chains for sustainable materials and mature energy systems like heat pumps and solar arrays, the premium has dropped to 2-4%. When offset against the higher rental yields and lower operating costs, the payback period is typically under three years.
Buildings that do not meet high sustainability benchmarks today will be the stranded assets of tomorrow.
Our recommendation
For any client building a commercial or multi-unit residential project, we strongly recommend targeting BREEAM Excellent as a minimum. The cost premium is marginal, the financial returns are proven, and the regulatory trajectory makes it inevitable. Better to lead than to catch up.