Customized Peer Groups

Introduction

The Customized Peer Group feature allows participants to review their predefined peer group, as allocated by GRESB, and, if relevant, create a customized peer group based on self-selected criteria (e.g., location, sector, fund size). The ranking for the customized peer group is displayed alongside the GRESB predefined peer group in the Benchmark Report.

Why Customize your Peer Group?

Real Estate Assessment participants can now contextualize their results against a set of uniquely defined characteristics. Depending on the chosen characteristics, they can:

• Reveal its rank within a group that is more relevant to its investors’ goals

• Showcase its performance within a broader group of peers

• Demonstrate its position compared to a more selective set of entities

The characteristics available for customization include:

• Location

• Property Type

• Legal Status

• Tenant Control

• Average Gross Asset Value

• Entity Commencement Date

• Asset Count

Participants may also add listed funds or remove individual peer group constituents to generate an even more precise group.

In 2024, more than 40% of real estate funds participating in the GRESB Assessment used the feature.

How to Customize Your Peer Group

To incorporate a customized peer group into the Benchmark Report, participants must confirm a customized peer group in the portal between August 1 and 15.

If a participant does not confirm a customized group within this time frame, their Benchmark Report will only display a predefined peer group.

1

Log in to the GRESB Portal

When the functionality is available (August 1-15), you will see a new assessment status called "Customize Peer Group."

Note: Only Account Managers can confirm or customize an entity's peer group.

2

Review Your Pre-Defined Peer Group

Clicking the new status will redirect you to an overview of your entity’s peer group, as predefined by GRESB. The methodology used is described here.

GRESB will create two peer groups for entities that submit three Components (Management, Performance, and Development)—one for Standing Investments and one for the Development portfolio. You can customize each group separately by clicking on the respective tabs at the top of the Entity Characteristics section.

If you do not wish to customize your peer group, simply click “Back to Entity” in the top-left corner to return to your portal. Otherwise, proceed below to create your Customized Peer Group for the 2025 Assessment.

3

Customize Peer Group

To start customizing, click on “Create” under the 2025 Customized Peer Group badge. This will launch a three-step process:

3.1 Create Peer Group

You will be redirected to a starting page. You have 3 options:

• Apply my Customized Peer Group from last year (2024) – This option is only available if you created a customised peer group in 2024. If selected, the filters and any added or removed constituents from last year will be applied – provided they are still available in the current year. Please note that any filters or constituents from 2024 that are no longer available in 2025 will not be presented.

• Apply GRESB Predefined Peer Group Criteria (2025) – This option begins with the standard peer group assigned by GRESB for 2025. You can use it as a base and make adjustments to suit your preferences.

• Start with a blank selection

3.2 Select Criteria

Once you click on “Next”, you will access an overview page containing all characteristics that can be modified, pre-filled, or not, depending on your earlier selection on step 1. On this page, you can add or remove characteristics as desired, even selecting those that differ from your own entity characteristics.

Keep in mind that a valid peer group must include at least six constituents (including your own entity). The list of matching entities will update at the bottom of the screen based on your selections. When you’re satisfied, click “Next Step” on the right-hand side to continue.

3.3 Review & Confirm

In this last step, you will be able to review the list of constituents in your customized peer group.

You can:

• Remove individual constituents (note that for non-listed entities, only the fund manager name is displayed due to privacy reasons. For listed entities, both the fund name and the fund manager name are displayed).

• Add individual listed entities. This feature is available for both listed and non-listed participants if in Step 2/3 (Select Criteria) the “Listed” checkbox under “Nature of Ownership” was ticked.

• It is currently not possible to add non-listed entities.

This process can be completed multiple times during August until the participant is satisfied with their final peer group selection.

Participants should make sure that they confirm any changes made to a previously created customized peer group. An unconfirmed customized peer group will not be displayed in the Benchmark Report. Through August 15, users may continue or repeat this process as much as they’d like.

If the Customized Peer Group is not confirmed, a red warning message will appear on the main Customize Peer Group landing page. To confirm your Customized Peer Group, select Edit, review the selections, and click Confirm. This action can only be performed by a user with account manager access rights and must be repeated whenever changes are made without confirmation. For additional guidance, see the FAQ section below.

Upon confirming, GRESB welcomes you to submit feedback on the functionality and suggest further improvements.

If you have any suggestions to improve the customized peer group functionality, GRESB welcomes you to submit feedback here.

Frequently Asked Questions

Customization

Am I required to create a customized peer group?

No, peer group customization is an optional feature that allows participants to have a more personalized peer group comparison. It does not affect scoring; the benchmark report will simply not display the customized insights.

If I select a higher-level criterion (e.g., Region), will it automatically include its more specific sub-criteria (e.g., Country)?

Selecting the checkbox next to a higher-level criterion will automatically select all underlying sub-criteria. For example, selecting Europe in the drop-down list title will include the continent itself, its sub-regions (e.g., Western Europe), and all associated countries.

However, selecting the higher-level criterion alone will not include its sub-criteria. If you wish to select only the highest-level criterion without including sub-criteria, scroll through the drop-down list and select the specific category directly.

How do I know if my Customized Peer Group has been confirmed?

To ensure your Customized Peer Groups are considered by GRESB and included in the final Benchmark Report, it must be confirmed by a user with account manager access rights. Confirmation happens in the final step of customization, when users are prompted to “Review Constituents.”

If the customized peer group has not been confirmed, a red warning message will appear on the main landing page stating:

“Your Customized Peer Group is not confirmed. To display it in the Benchmark Report, please Edit and Confirm.”

Common reasons for an unconfirmed Customized Peer Group include:

1. Beginning the customization process but not completing it, or not clicking “Confirm” in the final step.

2. Completing the customization process once, then clicking “Edit” afterward and not confirming this updated version.

Please note that only users with account manager access rights can complete this action.

Results

Will the customized peer group replace the pre-defined peer group insights?

No. The customized peer group will appear next to the entity’s pre-defined peer group, not in place of it. GRESB does not currently plan to remove pre-defined peer group insights from future Benchmark Reports.

Can I delete the customized peer group after seeing my ranking (i.e., during the Review Period, before GRESB releases final Benchmark Reports)?

No. Participants cannot edit or delete the customized peer group outside of the customization window (August 1-15th).

Please note:

• The customized peer group ranking does not impact the entity’s GRESB Score.

• Preliminary peer group rankings are subject to change once GRESB finalizes the results.

What if my customized peer group is the same as the predefined peer group?

If a Customized Peer Group is the same as the GRESB Predefined Peer Group—because you either selected identical criteria or different criteria that resulted in the same constituents—GRESB may remove the Customized Peer Group from the final Benchmark Report to avoid duplication.

To confirm whether your Customized and Predefined Peer Groups contain the same constituents, go to the main Customize Peer Group page, scroll down, and check the two lists presented, one under ‘Customized Peer Group’, and the second under ‘GRESB Predefined Peer Group’. If the two groups match, you may choose to delete the customized version, as it does not contribute additional value to the final report. Please note that whether or not you remove it has no impact on your scoring – it is simply a visual consideration for readers of the report.

Why don't I see a customized peer group in my Benchmark Report?

Another one of the entity’s users may have chosen to delete its customized group. If you’re unsure whether this was the case, feel free to check with [email protected].