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Audit-Ready Carbon Reporting for Property Managers and Brokers

Track office energy, business travel emissions, and optionally report emissions from managed property portfolios for client ESG services.

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The Industry Hotspot: Office Energy and Business Travel

5-15 tCO2 per employee

Real estate service firms have small direct carbon footprints (Scope 1+2) compared to property owners. A 500-employee property management firm operating from leased office space generates 5-15 tCO2/employee: Office electricity (Scope 2, 3-8 tCO2/employee depending on sqm per employee), Business travel (Scope 3 Category 6, 2-5 tCO2/employee for property inspections, client meetings), Fleet vehicles if operating property management (Scope 1, 2-4 tCO2/employee for site visits). Optionally, firms report managed property emissions (Scope 3 Category 15) to demonstrate ESG service value: Managing 5M sqm office portfolio generating 450,000 tCO2/year. NetNada tracks employee-level emissions, allocates office energy, and calculates managed portfolio footprint for client reporting.

SASB Industry Definition

The Real Estate Services industry consists of entities that provide property management, brokerage, appraisal, advisory, and facilities management services for commercial and residential real estate. Services include lease administration, tenant relations, building operations oversight, transaction brokerage for property sales/leases, and real estate investment advisory. Revenue comes from management fees (% of rent collected), brokerage commissions, and advisory fees. Unlike property owners, these entities do not own the real estate but manage it on behalf of owners.

View SASB Standard →

Industry-Specific Carbon Accounting

No generic solutions. Metrics, data sources, and reporting aligned to Real Estate Services operations.

Office Energy per Employee

Import utility bills for leased office space. Allocate by employee count or floor area occupied. Calculate: kWh/employee/year. Benchmark: Professional services 2,000-4,000 kWh/employee (10-15 sqm/employee × 150-250 kWh/sqm). Apply grid emission factor for Scope 2 (or Scope 3 Category 8 if lessor controls energy). Track WFH emissions if applicable.

kWh per employee

Business Travel Emissions Tracking

Extract from expense system: Flight bookings (origin, destination, class), Hotel nights, Car rentals. Calculate: Flight emissions using ICAO calculator, Hotel 20-40 kgCO2/night, Car rental by vehicle class (30-50 kgCO2/day). Aggregate to tCO2/employee. Benchmark: Property management 2-5 tCO2/employee/year (frequent site visits).

Travel emissions per employee

Property Management Fleet Tracking

For firms with fleet vehicles for site inspections: Import fuel card data (gallons diesel/gas by vehicle). Emission factor: 8.9 kgCO2/gallon gasoline, 10.2 kgCO2/gallon diesel. Calculate fleet efficiency: Miles driven ÷ Gallons (mpg). Track % hybrid/electric vehicles. Target: 30 mpg+ fleet average.

Fleet fuel efficiency

Managed Property Portfolio Carbon Footprint

For property management clients: Aggregate utility data for all managed properties. Calculate: Total kWh, Total sqm managed, Energy intensity (kWh/sqm), GHG intensity (kgCO2/sqm). Report as Scope 3 Category 15 (investments) if managing on behalf of funds, or as client service metric. Example: Manage 5M sqm office portfolio at 180 kWh/sqm → 900 GWh/year → 540,000 tCO2e.

Managed portfolio emissions

ESG Service Impact Tracking

If providing energy benchmarking, green lease advisory, or sustainability consulting: Track client outcomes (% energy reduction achieved, sqm transitioned to green leases, properties with improved certifications). Calculate value: Client energy savings (MWh) × Grid factor = tCO2 avoided through services (not a Scope reduction, but service impact metric).

Client ESG outcomes tracked

SASB IF-RS Metrics Automation

Auto-generate disclosure: Number of employees, office energy consumption, business travel emissions, fleet emissions (if applicable), sqm of properties managed. Footnotes cite allocation methodology for leased office space (Scope 3 Category 8).

SASB IF-RS compliant

Product Features for Real Estate Services

Use Carbon Data Uploader to import expense data for business travel, utility bills for offices, and managed property utility data for client carbon reporting. Learn more →

The Activity Calculator applies emission factors for air travel, hotel stays, fleet fuel, and office energy—calculating Scope 1-2-3 for service firms. Learn more →

Related Solutions

See our Carbon Accounting solution for real estate service firms tracking office, travel, and managed property portfolio emissions.

View solution

Real Estate Services Case Studies

How entities in this industry use NetNada to solve carbon accounting challenges.

National Property Management Firm (800 employees, managing 12M sqm office/retail)

Challenge

Corporate clients (REITs, pension funds) required managed property carbon footprint reporting for their Scope 3 Category 15 disclosures. Manual aggregation from 200+ property utility bills took 120 hours/quarter.

Solution

Deployed NetNada with utility data aggregation. Imported utility bills for managed properties via automated feeds from landlords. Calculated portfolio: 12M sqm managed, 175 kWh/sqm average energy intensity, 630,000 tCO2e annual emissions. Generated client-specific reports: Fund A (4M sqm, 210,000 tCO2e), Fund B (8M sqm, 420,000 tCO2e).

Result

Reduced quarterly reporting time from 120 hours to 15 hours. Launched 'Carbon-as-a-Service' offering: Clients pay $20k/year premium for monthly carbon dashboards and quarterly GRESB-ready reports. 40% of clients adopted service ($800k/year new revenue). Won 3 new property management contracts highlighting carbon reporting capability.

Commercial Real Estate Brokerage (450 employees, 25 offices)

Challenge

AASB S2 required Scope 1-2-3 disclosure for service firms. 90% of footprint was business travel (frequent flights for property tours, client meetings). Needed per-employee carbon tracking for internal reduction targets.

Solution

Used NetNada with expense system integration. Extracted 100% of flight bookings, hotel nights, car rentals. Calculated baseline: 3,200 tCO2 travel emissions, 7.1 tCO2/employee. Segmented by role: Brokers 12 tCO2/employee (high travel), Back-office 2 tCO2/employee. Implemented travel policy: Virtual tours for initial showings, train for <300 km routes.

Result

Reduced travel emissions 22% over 2 years (3,200 → 2,500 tCO2). Per-employee average: 7.1 → 5.5 tCO2/employee. Published sustainability report showing largest reduction in services sector peer group. Used as differentiator in institutional client RFPs emphasizing ESG credentials.

SASB Disclosure Topics for Real Estate Services

Material sustainability topics beyond emissions that investors and stakeholders expect disclosed per SASB standards.

Energy Management (Office Operations)

environment

Track electricity consumption for leased office spaces. Report kWh per employee and % from renewable energy. Most real estate service firms operate from leased commercial office buildings.

Business Travel Emissions

environment

Monitor air travel for property inspections, client meetings, conferences. Track rental cars and hotel nights. Report tCO2e per employee from Scope 3 Category 6 travel.

Fleet Emissions (Property Management)

environment

For property management firms with vehicle fleets for site inspections: Track fuel consumption by vehicle. Report fleet fuel efficiency and % alternative fuels (hybrid, electric).

Managed Property Portfolio Emissions (Optional)

business model

Property managers overseeing building operations can report emissions from managed properties. Disclose sqm managed, energy intensity (kWh/sqm), and portfolio GHG intensity as Scope 3 Category 15.

Employee Engagement and Diversity

social

Report employee diversity metrics (gender, ethnicity), training hours per employee, and employee turnover rate. Disclose compensation equity and benefits.

Client ESG Service Offerings

business model

Disclose % of clients receiving ESG advisory services (energy benchmarking, green lease negotiation, sustainability reporting). Report revenue from ESG-related services.

NetNada tracks all SASB material topics, not just emissions. Our platform supports disclosure across environmental, social, governance, and business model topics relevant to your industry.

Real Estate Services FAQs

Common questions about carbon accounting for this industry

Should real estate service firms report emissions from properties they manage but don't own?
Optional under GHG Protocol. If property manager has operational control over building systems (HVAC, lighting decisions), report as Scope 1+2. If manager only provides administrative services (lease admin, tenant coordination) without operational control → Owner reports Scope 1+2, manager does not. Best practice for property managers: Report own office/travel emissions (Scope 1-2-3), then separately disclose managed property emissions as 'Portfolio Metric' or Scope 3 Category 15 (if managing investment portfolios) to demonstrate ESG service value. Clarify attribution in notes.
How do commercial real estate brokers calculate their carbon footprint?
Brokerage firms have minimal Scope 1 (few vehicles). Primary sources: (1) Scope 2 = Office electricity in leased spaces (allocate by sqm or per employee). (2) Scope 3 Category 6 = Business travel (flights for property tours, client meetings), hotel nights, rental cars. (3) Scope 3 Category 8 = Leased office energy if landlord controls utilities. Typical brokerage: 60% travel, 30% office energy, 10% other. Report per-employee emissions (5-15 tCO2/employee) for benchmarking.
What's the carbon impact of virtual property tours vs in-person showings?
Virtual tours eliminate travel emissions. Example: Broker flies 500 km for showing → 1 passenger × 500 km × 0.15 kgCO2/passenger-km = 75 kgCO2 per trip. If conducting 10 showings/month virtually vs in-person → Save 10 × 75 × 12 months = 9,000 kgCO2/year per broker. For national brokerage with 100 brokers → 900 tCO2/year avoided. Virtual tour energy negligible (0.5 kWh server/bandwidth × 0.6 kgCO2/kWh = 0.3 kgCO2). Calculate ROI: Travel time saved + Carbon reduction.
Can property managers claim credit for energy efficiency improvements they implement at client properties?
Energy savings are attributed to property owner (they benefit from reduced utility costs and emissions). Property manager can report as 'Client Impact Metric' (not a Scope reduction). Example: Property manager implements LED retrofits across managed portfolio → 15% energy reduction → 95,000 tCO2 avoided annually. Report as: 'Our energy management services helped clients avoid 95,000 tCO2 in 2026.' Supports ESG-linked fee structures and demonstrates service value but does not reduce manager's own Scope 1-2-3.
How do real estate appraisers and advisory firms estimate their carbon footprint?
Minimal physical operations, mostly professional services. Primary emissions: (1) Office energy (Scope 2/Scope 3 Category 8): Typically 10-15 sqm/employee × 150 kWh/sqm = 1,500-2,250 kWh/employee → 0.9-1.4 tCO2/employee. (2) Business travel (Scope 3 Category 6): Site visits, client meetings → 2-5 tCO2/employee/year. Total: 3-6 tCO2/employee, lower than brokerage/property management. Focus on travel reduction (virtual meetings) and office efficiency (shared workspaces, remote work policies).

Track Office, Travel, and Managed Property Emissions for Real Estate Services

See how property managers and brokers measure per-employee carbon footprints and report managed portfolio emissions for client ESG services—automated.

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