In an increasingly challenging and volatile ecosystem, where more than 60% of carbon emissions within cities typically come from buildings, a real estate firm, The Address Homes, has emphasised the urgent need for property firms to embrace the global shift towards the reduction of carbon emissions into the environment.

The Address Homes Limited, a leading real estate company engaged in the acquisition, development and management of luxurious contemporary homes across Nigeria, made the call during a two-day 2022 Real Estate Unite Summit held in Lagos recently.

Making this known on the sidelines of the summit with the theme: Towards A Sustainable Culture, Segun Ogunbiyi, Marketing Manager/Client Sales Executive, The Address Homes, said all hands must be on deck to ensure the preservation of the environment via sustainable practices in the real estate sector.

Ogunbiyi said there had been various calls across the real estate sector and beyond for individuals and business entities to prioritise clean and renewable sources of energy.

He said, “The world is trying to see how it can reduce the emission of carbon monoxide to secure nature. There’s a need for all real estate organisations to create a sustainable policy within their system that revolves around the workforce, work methodology, the design and the team.”

“There are no quick fixes that will suddenly transform today’s energy inefficient buildings into models of sustainable construction in the coming decades. It will take time, investment and expertise to retrofit the majority of buildings across urban areas.

“Yet given that more than 60% of carbon emissions within cities typically come from buildings, a concerted effort is needed sooner rather than later.

“It’s why longer-term commitments for a net-zero future are now fuelling shorter-term pressures to start formulating action plans that will deliver steady progress.

According to him, one big step towards embracing greener energy sources would be to phase out the use of fossil-based power sources, a practice embraced by the Address Homes.

“When we talk about sustainability, there’s a green concept now. Projects have to be certified LEED. For instance, if you do more generators, you reduce them in order to safeguard the atmosphere.

“When you put on a log of generators, there is carbon emission. Technologically, It is being advised that we should start the installation of solar systems, and electric systems in order to sustain the ecosystem.”

Also speaking at the event, Ruth Obih, Convener, Unite Summit said the summit which is in its ten years was created to fill the global gap noticed in the industry, “When we started about 10 years ago, I felt there was a global gap that we needed to fill, that we needed a global summit for the industry to dialogue, talk about issues, challenges industry and trying to find solutions.”

Obih noted; “Over the years, the annual summit has been able to address some critical issues in the real estate industry, however, what we’ve found over the years is that when we find an issue today and you think you have addressed it, tomorrow another issue comes up. That’s how we have been taking it in filling the gaps. Why we are here at this sustainability conference today is that we realized that for us even achieve any of the solutions that we have, we need to take one step which is sustainable development. And that’s why we are here today to preach the gospel of sustainability so that people can begin to understand what sustainability is especially with the growth environment and begin to also take steps in seeing how we can take care of this climate crisis.

“According to data, the industry contributes about 40% of carbon emission to the environment. That is quite huge. To address this, it comes from your planning, design, and construction. If we begin to take better sustainable steps, at least in this industry, we can be able to reduce the risk of a climatic crisis which is a potential pandemic which could be worse than covid.”

Describing The Address Homes as a new brand with less than ten years in the industry, the Founder, Unite Community said the firm has been able to be consistent with its promise of delivering luxury homes that combine high class contemporary architectural design with high-level finishes.

She however noted that with what she has seen, in the next few years, she believed The Address Homes would be able to achieve certified sustainable luxury buildings that are free from carbon emission.

Meanwhile, also speaking at the summit, Doyin Olaleye, Client Sales Executive, The Address Homes, noted that the real estate firm believes that Nigerians could actually live in luxurious homes without having to break the banks.

“At The Address Homes, we make luxury, premium and high-end homes available to people at affordable prices. We encourage a convenient payment structure for our customers. When people hear about luxury homes, they believe they have to break the banks before they could be able to afford to live in houses in Ikoyi, Lekki and Banana Island. But we at The Address Homes believe that people can actually live in those places without having too much pressure on their finances.

“We make it possible by giving you a well-structured payment plan, in which you pay within two to three years conveniently. We don’t really go strict on our payment plan. We work with your finances to make it easy for you because we believe that luxury is for everyone.”