What the EU’s new anti-greenwashing rules mean for real estate developers and owners

From Physical Climate Risks to Concrete Solutions The timeliness of climate adaptation is highlighted by the fact that Gábor Szarvas, Managing Director of Greenbors Consulting, returned from London just the day before the event, where temperatures around 27 °C were still being measured in late September and early October. However, the difference was not only striking on the thermometer: under the shade of the trees, the temperature dropped to around 18 °C. It is particularly

The Hungarian-developed Sustainabot has received international professional recognition: the AI-powered solution supporting BREEAM assessors has won the Digital Sustainability Innovation category at the 2026 BREEAM Awards. The development brings together Greenbors Consulting’s BREEAM expertise with AI technology. The award was presented in London on 30 September at the 2026 BREEAM Awards ceremony. For Sustainabot, this represents an important international recognition: a solu

When purchasing a laptop, factors like price, performance, warranty, and operational security usually take center stage. From a sustainability perspective, however, another crucial question should be asked: Do we really need to manufacture a new device?

2028-ra érkezik a „zéró emissziós” épületenergetikai követelmény – mit jelent ez az épületgépészeknek?

When assessing logistics properties, factors such as location, technical standards and tenant structure are increasingly being considered alongside the building’s energy and water consumption, operating costs, environmental impact and broader ESG considerations. These factors can have a direct impact on a property’s long-term competitiveness, financing potential and ability to retain its value. A strong example is Rossmann’s 39,000-square-metre logistics centre in Üllő, compl

A Rossmann üllői központ projekt tanulságai A logisztikai ingatlanok értékelésében az elhelyezkedés, a műszaki színvonal vagy a bérlői struktúra mellett egyre inkább felértékelődnek az épület energia- és vízfelhasználása, üzemeltetésének költségei, a környezeti terhelése, illetve az ESG-szempontok is. Ezek a tényezők közvetlenül befolyásolhatják egy ingatlan hosszú távú versenyképességét, finanszírozhatóságát és értékállóságát. Kiváló példa erre a Rossmann 2025-ben elkészü

Climate risk is increasingly becoming an operational risk A building is designed for decades, while the climatic and infrastructural conditions in which it must operate are changing much faster. Temperatures above 40 °C in Hungary are no longer exclusively a future scenario. Persistent heatwaves place an increasing burden on energy supply and building mechanical (MEP) systems. Prolonged droughts can lead to water supply problems in certain regions, and then longer precipit

BRE officially published the BREEAM Refurbishment V7 manuals. Based on an initial review, the new version is not merely a minor update, but includes significant revisions across several areas compared to the previous BREEAM International Refurbishment and Fit Out 2015 (RFO) scheme. Key changes: Scheme Split: The previous BREEAM Refurbishment and Fit Out (RFO) scheme has split into two separate certification schemes: BREEAM Refurbishment V7 – for full or major building refurbi

New projects can still be registered under LEED v4 and v4.1 until June 30, 2027 In today's global real estate market, it is no longer enough to describe a building as simply energy-efficient or sustainable. Investors, lenders, and tenants increasingly require verified, comparable data on a building's energy performance, carbon emissions, climate resilience, and occupant well-being. LEED certification provides one of the world's most widely recognized frameworks for evaluating

Since its founding, Greenbors Consulting has been committed to making sustainability and green building certification processes more efficient, transparent, and commercially valuable for its clients. One of the company's most significant achievements in this mission is Sustainabot, an AI-powered digital assistant developed two years ago in collaboration with our technology partner, E-worker Technologies. We are proud to announce that Sustainabot has been shortlisted for the D

One of the key messages of Greenbors Consulting's second business breakfast was that green real estate is no longer merely a technical or certification issue, but also a business, financing, and risk management consideration. Based on this, how do you assess the Hungarian market? Today, there are several different approaches to defining what constitutes a green building. International certification schemes coexist with the EU Taxonomy, while energy performance certificates, c

The EU Taxonomy is no longer merely an optional compliance framework in the real estate sector; it has become one of the key pillars of the European Union’s sustainable finance architecture. The Taxonomy serves as the EU’s common classification system for determining which economic activities can be considered environmentally sustainable. Based on the direction of EU regulation, it is becoming increasingly clear that the framework will become an unavoidable factor for the rea

Challenges and Opportunities in Sustainable Real Estate Financing Greenbors Consulting's second business breakfast of the year explored from a practical perspective how the EU Taxonomy is expected to reshape the logic behind real estate development, financing, and investment decisions. The collective takeaway from the presentations, expert panel discussion, and a survey conducted among the professional audience is that the EU Taxonomy is increasingly being viewed as a busines

The EU Taxonomy Regulation answers exactly this: it has created a common, science-based framework that provides a uniform methodology for financial and market players to identify their sustainable projects. In the real estate sector, this is particularly important, as the eligibility for financing, long-term value preservation, and risk assessment of developments are increasingly influenced by ESG expectations. The system focuses not only on energy performance, but also exten

Why John Elkington—the architect of the Triple Bottom Line—stepped back from his own framework, and why the future of corporate sustainability now points beyond compliance toward regenerative business. For years, corporate sustainability was built around reporting, checklists, and incremental improvement. However, this compliance-centric model has visibly reached its limits and is now breaking down. Sustainability consultants are often criticized for relying on overly abstrac

In the domestic market, relatively little is said about the "Huxonomy" approach. However, the MNB’s (Central Bank of Hungary) renewed Green Capital Requirement Discount Program continues to allow certain projects to access favorable green financing schemes through a simplified compliance pathway, rather than the full application of the EU Taxonomy. One of the greatest advantages of this structure is that, in certain cases, it can reduce the administrative burdens and the over

In recent years, it has become clear that sustainability is no longer merely a reputational issue in the real estate market; it is increasingly a defining factor in financing viability, asset value, and long-term competitiveness. Demand from both investors and tenants for green-certified or ESG-compliant properties is on the rise, while financiers are also showing a growing preference for projects that meet sustainability expectations. In Hungary, the Green Capital Requiremen

“A Zero Emission Building (ZEB) is the defining building energy standard of the near future, which all market participants—developers, owners, tenants, investors, and financiers—must understand and apply.” -emphasized Gábor Szarvas, Managing Director of Greenbors, during a panel discussion at MEHI’s conference titled “Guidance for the Hungarian Implementation of the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD).” One of the key messages from the expert, who also contribut

Greenbors further strengthened its market-leading position in Hungary’s rapidly growing BREEAM certification market in 2025. The year 2025 proved to be a milestone in the history of sustainable architecture and certification systems in Hungary. An analysis of the latest Market Snapshot reveals a trend that is particularly important to us at Greenbors Consulting: the meeting of demand for expertise and quality. Based on the latest data from GreenbookLive , we are proud to stat