A New Way to Finance the Greening of Co-ops

Let’s Give PACE a Chance.

PACE is a new exciting way of financing property improvements. It is currently available in the District of Columbia and 33 other states. PACE stands for Property Assessed Clean Energy and is the new way to finance eco-friendly property management projects. The concept of PACE could be what not only the United States, but the entire world needs right now when it comes to implementing green property management.

The objective of PACE is to ensure that building owners have access to cheap long-term finance for projects which involve renovations which help to reduce greenhouse emissions. The funds come from local government bonds and are paid back through property taxes.


Eco-Friendly Property Management

Similar sort of loans and financing have been available in Europe for some time now. It has led to a reduction in greenhouse gases in major European cities such as Paris and Madrid. The idea is to improve the value of the building by installing environmentally friendly property management energy systems.

In Europe, it is one of the most popular ways to obtain finance for eco-friendly property improvement projects. In fact, exciting results are already coming through the European system. In Madrid, buildings which have been fitted with solar panels systems are “selling” energy back to the national grid.

eco-friendly property management-manhattan-new-york-ny
The Way of the Future

Eco-friendly heating and cooling systems begin to reduce greenhouse gas emissions very quickly. Instead of using traditional methods to heat the building, they ensure the building generates as much of its own energy as possible.

This reduces the building dependency on coal and other forms of energy which increase greenhouse emissions.

Taking advantage of PACE has another major advantage. It increases the value of the property as reduced day-to-day energy living expenses are seen as an attractive way of saving money in the long run. Maybe we should all think of low emissions systems as investments and not as a liability.


PACE Is About Cash Flow and Eco-Friendly Lifestyle

Although taking out a PACE loan still represents a debt, it is a debt that is repaid over a longer term than a traditional loan. Even if the building goes into administration, the loan will remain in place and continue to be paid through the property tax assessment system. In other words, lenders don’t have to see it as a financial liability against the building.

It really can’t get much better. The truth is that we need to get serious about eco-friendly property management. Our cities are polluted and it is affecting the health of everybody. If all cities across the world set up similar schemes to the US PACE system, we could potentially wipe out greenhouses gases from buildings in all major cities and towns.

Sure, pollution from traffic is likely to remain a serious problem for some time. But, if we start looking at reducing greenhouse gases as a way of saving money, maybe we will reach a negative emission status much faster than we can even imagine.

We would help nature and at the same time, save money by making use of new energy-saving property management systems. Maybe that is ultimately what eco-friendly living is all about when it comes down to it.