Real Estate Structure & Scope

Understand the assessment composition and the reporting boundaries.

About the Assessment

The GRESB Real Estate Assessment is the global standard for sustainability benchmarking and reporting for listed property companies, private property funds, developers, and investors that invest directly in real estate. Its methodology is consistent across different regions and investment vehicles, and it aligns with international reporting frameworks, such as the Task Force on Climate-Related Financial Disclosures (TCFD), Global Reporting Initiative (GRI), and Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI).

The Real Estate Assessment output depends on a participant's component selection, which is entirely under their discretion. However, once an entity chooses to complete a component, it must report 100% of owned assets within its scope.

Please refer to the "What are the participation requirements?" sections below for details on GRESB's reporting boundary requirements.

Which component(s) should I choose?

	Portfolio Composition	Component Completion	Output
	Portfolios with operational assets	Management + Performance	Standing Investments Benchmark
	Portfolios with development assets	Management + Development	Development Benchmark
+	Portfolios with operational and development assets	Management + Performance +	Standing Investments AND Development Benchmarks
+	Portfolios with operational >75% residential assets	Management + Performance + Residential	Standing Investments Benchmark AND Residential Sector Insight

Best Practice

While most GRESB Participants complete two assessment components (for either the Standing Investments Benchmark or the Development Benchmark), some choose to only complete the Management Component in their first year of participation.

In cases where an entity has standing investments and development projects and considers itself both a building operator and involved in development activities, GRESB highly recommends participating in both benchmarks (Standing Investment & Development).

As a result, participants will receive two GRESB Scores, two GRESB Ratings, two Peer Groups, etc., capturing how an entity approaches its respective activities in both benchmarks. For more information on the results metrics in the Benchmark Report, refer to the Leveraging your Data page.

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Standing Investments Benchmark

What is the Standing Investments Benchmark?

The Standing Investments Benchmark is made of two components:

• Management Component (30 points)

• Performance Component (70 points)

Who should participate?

The Standing Investment Benchmark is suitable for any real estate company or fund that owns operational assets during the reporting period.

What are the participation requirements?

Performance Component Scope

In scope: What are participants required to include?

Participants must report on all standing investments in their portfolio during the reporting year, regardless of ownership or operational control percentage. This includes those sold or purchased and/or assets that may not be recorded as physical assets on the entity’s balance sheet (e.g., assets structured as a financial lease).

A standing investment is a physical real estate asset owned by the reporting entity that has completed construction and is not undergoing major renovation.

To be considered a standing investment, the asset must either:

• exist for the primary purpose of income generation, or,

• actively consume resources.

Examples of assets that consume resources without the primary goal of generating rental income include security and monitoring centers, water treatment or irrigation pump stations, boiler or chiller plants serving multiple buildings, playgrounds, fitness centers in residential or mixed-use buildings, and maintenance sheds.

Excluded from scope: What are participants required to exclude?

Non-real estate assets owned by the entity are excluded from the reporting boundary requirements. Participants must therefore exclude vacant land, dormant assets, cash, and ground leases. Assets owned for only one day during the reporting year should be excluded from the scope.

A non-real estate asset is:

• Any asset that does not constitute a physical property that consumes resources or generates income.

Example Scenarios

Scenario	Is it within scope?	Explanation
Financial stake in a company that owns real estate	Exclude	Holding shares in a company does not give the entity ownership of the underlying real estate. Since the entity does not directly own or operate those assets, it must exclude them from reporting.
FRI Lease	Include	In an FRI lease, the entity still owns the building, even if the tenant handles repairs and insurance. Because the entity owns a resource-consuming asset, it must report it.
Triple Net Lease	Include	Triple Net leases shift certain costs and operational control to the tenant, but the entity continues to own the property. Since the asset remains part of the portfolio and consumes resources, the entity must include it in reporting.
Non-real estate asset structured as a financial lease	Include	When an asset is structured as a financial lease, the entity effectively owns and controls the physical asset. Because the entity holds the economic benefits and operational risks, it must report the asset’s performance.
Physical real estate assets that do not consume any resources	Exclude	A property that is entirely non-operational during the reporting period and, as such, neither consumes energy nor water nor generates emissions or waste, must be excluded. This designation applies primarily to assets marked for major redevelopment or similar inactive status.
Physical real estate assets that consume residual resources	Include	Assets consuming residual resources, such as standby energy for minimal operations, do not qualify as dormant and must be included in the Performance Component. The dormant classification applies strictly to assets without operational activity or resource use.
Manufactured Homes	Depends	If the entity owns the land upon which manufactured homes are leased, this is considered a ground lease and must be excluded. However, if the entity owns some physical buildings on the land, it is required to report them. In this scenario, the entity must consider the value of the land when calculating the Gross Asset Value of those physical buildings.

Still unsure whether to include an asset? Contact the GRESB Helpdesk.

What if the entity lacks operational control?

GRESB distinguishes between landlord-controlled and tenant-controlled areas in the Energy, GHG Emissions, Water, and Waste aspects of the Performance Component. This is done to recognize the fact that landlords of tenant-controlled areas may have little or no control over the use or purchase of utilities for the asset or over waste management practices.

How to determine operational control:

• Landlord-Controlled Areas: The landlord has operational control if they can introduce and implement policies. If both the landlord and tenant share this authority, the area should be classified as Landlord-Controlled.

• Tenant-Controlled Areas: The tenant has operational control if they hold the primary authority to implement operating and environmental policies. For example, areas under a full repairing and insuring (FRI) lease in England and Wales are Tenant Controlled.

GRESB does not explicitly distinguish between landlord- and tenant-controlled areas outside the Energy, GHG Emissions, Water, and Waste aspects.

What if the entity lacks complete ownership? (Joint Ventures)

Participants are required to report on all assets held as part of a joint venture, joint operation, or joint ownership, regardless of whether they have direct operational control over an asset.

There are two primary types of joint ventures, and each should be reported as follows:

• Partial Ownership of Floor Area: If the reporting entity owns only a portion of an asset’s floor area, the entity may report exclusively on the portion it owns and indicate 100% ownership for that portion in the submission.

• Shared Financial Stake in the Entire Asset: If the reporting entity owns the entire asset jointly with other funds but holds only a partial financial stake, the entire asset and its operational data must be included in the submission. Additionally, participants must report the percentage ownership that represents their financial stake in the asset.

In both cases, participants must report on any measures taken for these assets, even if the joint arrangement limits the participant’s direct operational control. This ensures that investors are aware of the associated risks and exposure.

If an asset is part of multiple portfolios managed by the same fund manager, it should be treated as a joint venture in each portfolio, following the rules outlined above.

Residential Sector Insight

What is the Residential Sector Insight?

The Residential Sector Insight is a tailored output for entities that complete three components:

• Management Component

• Performance Component

• Residential Component

The Residential Component is a set of sector-specific indicators for real estate participants who invest predominantly in residential assets. The residential-specific indicators (RES1–RES6) address sector-relevant topics such as fair housing, infrastructure quality, and affordability.

Who should participate?

The Residential Component is suitable for any entity whose portfolio comprises 75% or more residential assets by Gross Asset Value (GAV).

All asset types that begin with “Residential” contribute to this threshold. This includes:

• Residential: Multi-Family: Low-Rise

• Residential: Multi-Family: Mid-Rise

• Residential: Multi-Family: High-Rise

• Residential: Family Homes

• Residential: Student Housing

• Residential: Retirement Living

• Residential: Other

Conversely, mixed-use asset types such as “Mixed use: Office/Residential” are not counted toward the residential GAV when evaluating the 75% threshold for participation in the Residential Component​.

What are the participation requirements?

Participants' Standing Investment portfolio must comprise at least 75% residential assets by Gross Asset Value (GAV). Diversified portfolios with less than 75% residential GAV will not receive a Sector Insight: Residential Report even if they select the Residential Component within the Assessment Portal. 

Development Benchmark

What is the Development Benchmark?

The Development Benchmark is made of two components:

• Management Component (30 points)

• Development Component (70 points)

Who should participate?

The Development Benchmark is suitable for any entity involved in new construction (building design, site selection, or construction) or major renovation projects

What are the participation requirements?

Development Component Scope

Participants must report on all assets under design, new construction, and/or major renovation that were in progress during the reporting year, regardless of ownership percentage.

In scope: What is considered a development asset?

1. New construction

   1. What: All activities to obtain or change building or land use permissions and financing, including:

      1. Construction work for the project to enhance the property’s value.

      2. The development of new buildings and additions to existing buildings that affect usable space.

   2. When: Any time during the reporting year.

2. Major renovations

   1. What: Alterations that affect more than 50 percent of the total building floor area or cause the relocation of more than 50 percent of regular building occupants.

   2. When: Any time during the reporting year.

Excluded from scope: What is not considered a development asset?

Participants should exclude vacant land, cash, projects funded through forward funding or purchase funds, and other non–real estate assets owned by the entity.

What if the entity lacks complete ownership?

Participants are required to report on all assets held as part of a joint venture, joint operation, or joint ownership, regardless of whether they have direct operational control over an asset. There are two primary types of joint ventures, and each should be reported as follows:

• Partial Ownership of Floor Area: If the reporting entity owns only a portion of an asset’s floor area, the entity may report exclusively on the portion it owns and indicate 100% ownership for that portion in the submission.

• Shared Financial Stake in the Entire Asset: If the reporting entity owns the entire asset jointly with other funds but holds only a partial financial stake, the entire asset and its operational data must be included in the submission. Additionally, participants must report the percentage ownership that represents their financial stake in the asset.

In both cases, participants must report on any measures taken for these assets, even if the joint arrangement limits the participant’s direct operational control. This ensures that investors are aware of the associated risks and exposure.

If an asset is part of multiple portfolios managed by the same fund manager, it should be treated as a joint venture in each portfolio, following the rules outlined above.

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Allocation of E, S, and G across the Assessment

Each indicator in the assessment is allocated to one of the three sustainability dimensions (E‑ environmental; S‑ social; G‑ governance):

• E - indicators related to actions and efficiency measures undertaken to monitor and decrease the environmental footprint of the asset

• S - indicators related to the entity’s relationship with and impact on its stakeholders and the direct social impact of its activities

• G - indicators related to the governance of sustainability, policies and procedures, and approach to sustainability at the entity or organization level

	Environmental	Social	Governance
Management	0%	34.2%	65.8%
Performance	88.6%	11.4%	0%
Development	75.7%	18.6%	5.7%