“SHED Co-living” student house belonging to “IAM European Student Housing Fund” portfolio managed by “I Asset Management”, has been awarded the “Excellent” rating of the sustainable building standard BREEAM In-use.

BREEAM (Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method) is the most widely used method for assessing the environmental impact of buildings in the world. In awarding the BREEAM In Use certificate, the auditors assess 8 areas related to the sustainability and coherence of the building.

SHED Co-living, which meets the A++ energy efficiency class, was awarded “Excellent” rating for being the best in the fields of resilience, health and well-being, and energy, and the total number of points collected is 72.1 out of 100.

The building is equipped with bicycle storage, electric car charging stations, a leak detection system, CO2 sensors installed in common areas and LED-type lamps with automatic energy-saving controls that were used for indoor and outdoor lighting. Also, based on the ornithologist’s recommendation, bird nesting boxes were installed on the roof of the building. A total of over 10 million euros was invested in the project.

Viktorija Valentonovičiūtė, investment director of the “Student Housing Fund”

“We are proud to have achieved one of the funds’ strategic goals by receiving the BREEAM In-use sustainability certificate. Obtaining probably the highest possible “Excellent” rating, given to the building for effectively applied sustainability solutions, allows us to compete with projects of this type not only in the Baltic countries but also in the entire CRE region. To our knowledge, there are currently only 5 student housing projects in this region with BREEAM certification, of which only two are equivalent to the one we received,” says Viktorija Valentonovičiūtė, investment director of the “Student Housing Fund”.

The 1 Asset Management team is also currently in the process of certifying newly opened private student housing in Krakow. The largest student housing project managed by the company so far and the first in Poland aims to obtain a rating of at least BREEAM “Very Good”. It is also planned that other projects developed in Poland in the future will meet the highest BREEAM ratings.

Sustainability is no longer a fad, but the norm

“Working with clients, we see that sustainable construction and building certifications are becoming the norm in the real estate market. Although the BREEAM In-use scheme is one of the most popular in Lithuania, not everyone gets the “Excellent” rating. In order to achieve such a high level of evaluation, it is necessary to put in a lot of effort and apply unconventional solutions. “SHED Co-living” in Vilnius aimed not only at the sustainability of the building – the installed building management system ensures energy efficient use of engineering systems – but also paid a lot of attention to the well-being of students. During the project, a lot of investment was made in the creation of common spaces, such as a gym, chill and play areas. It is also important to mention the added ecological value that the “SHED Co-living” team created for the building and its surrounding environment by installing nesting boxes on the roof of the property.” says Ugnė Didžiariekytė, the sustainability consultant of the company “Vesta Consulting”.

“Sustainability is no longer a fashion these days, but simply a new standard that we as a fund strive to adhere to when creating future projects. Sustainable, energetically harmonious projects are not only more useful for people and nature, but also in a long term add to the creation of higher value and return for investors,” adds V. Valentonovičiūtė.

More about student housing fund here.

More about “SHED Co-living” Vilnius here.