Assessing the Disclosure of Green-Rated Properties in Real Estate Investment Trust Portfolios

Authors

  • Nurin Iyazi Raman The Institute of Postgraduate Studies (IPSis), Universiti Teknologi MARA Perak Branch, Seri Iskandar Campus, 32610 Seri Iskandar, Perak, Malaysia
  • Nor Nazihah Chuweni Program of Real Estate Management, Faculty of Built Environment, Universiti Teknologi MARA Perak Branch, Seri Iskandar Campus, 32610 Seri Iskandar, Perak, Malaysia
  • Andrea Blake School of Economics and Finance, Queensland University of Technology, Gardens Point Campus, 2 George St, Brisbane City QLD 4000, Australia

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.24191/bej.v23i2.7436

Keywords:

Green Rating, Real Estate, Sustainability, Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT), Content Analysis, Malaysia

Abstract

The increasing global emphasis on sustainability has brought heightened attention to how Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) incorporate environmentally responsible practices into their property portfolios. This study conducts a content analysis on the disclosure of green-rated buildings within REIT portfolios, focusing on how such information reflects sustainability commitments and communicates its value relevance to investors. Employing a qualitative content analysis approach, the research systematically reviews the 2023 audited annual reports of all 19 publicly listed Malaysian REITs. The analysis identifies the presence and levels of certification across four (4) key rating tools: Malaysia’s GreenRE and Green Building Index (GBI), along with internationally recognised standards such as Singapore’s Green Mark and the U.S.-based Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED). The findings reveal diverse patterns of adoption and disclosure, reflecting varying degrees of commitment among REIT managers. The study offers meaningful insights for investors by enhancing their understanding of REITs’ sustainability commitments, enabling more informed and responsible investment decisions aligned with ESG principles and long-term value creation.

Author Biographies

  • Nurin Iyazi Raman, The Institute of Postgraduate Studies (IPSis), Universiti Teknologi MARA Perak Branch, Seri Iskandar Campus, 32610 Seri Iskandar, Perak, Malaysia

    Nurin Iyazi Raman is currently a postgraduate student at Universiti Teknologi MARA, Perak Branch, Malaysia. Her research interests include sustainable real estate investment, green REITs, and efficiency and productivity analysis. She can be reached through her email at nureeniyazi@gmail.com.

  • Nor Nazihah Chuweni, Program of Real Estate Management, Faculty of Built Environment, Universiti Teknologi MARA Perak Branch, Seri Iskandar Campus, 32610 Seri Iskandar, Perak, Malaysia

    Nor Nazihah Chuweni obtained her Ph.D in Property Economics from Queensland University of Technology, Australia.  She is currently a senior lecturer at Universiti Teknologi MARA, Perak Branch, Malaysia. Her research interests include efficiency and productivity analysis (data envelopment analysis and stochastic frontier analysis), real estate investment, total factor productivity, Islamic REITs, green real estate, and the construction industry. She can be reached through her email at norna692@uitm.edu.my.

  • Andrea Blake, School of Economics and Finance, Queensland University of Technology, Gardens Point Campus, 2 George St, Brisbane City QLD 4000, Australia

    Andrea Blake has over 15 years of academic experience at the Queensland University of Technology and is currently a senior lecturer in property economics. During this period Andrea has published papers and spoken at international academic conferences on topics including property rights, valuation liability and practice, and property education. Andrea's PhD is in carbon sequestration and the impact on rural land and valuation practice. Prior to becoming an academic, Andrea has 10 years’ experience in the property and legal sectors and has worked in professional services. She can be reached through her email at a.blake@qut.edu.au.

References

Abd. Hamid, Z., Mohd. Zain, M. Z., Hung, F. C., Mohd Noor, M. S., Roslan, A. F., Mat Kilau, N., & Che Ali, M. (2014). Towards A National Green Building Rating System for Malaysia. Malaysian Construction Research Journal, 14(1), 1-16. Retrieved from https://www.cream.my/usr/product.aspx?pgid=88&id=37&grpid=13&lang=en

Abdul-Aziz, A.-R., & Ofori, G. (2012). Genesis of Malaysia’s Policy Relating to Sustainability of the Built Environment. Open House International, 37(4), 39–49. https://doi.org/10.1108/ohi-04-2012-b0005

Abdullah, K., & Usman, A. M. (2022). Development of comprehensive carbon footprint and environmental impact indicators for building transportation assessment. Frontiers in Engineering and Built Environment, 2(3), 167 – 183. https://doi.org/10.1108/febe-11-2021-0053

Abdulrahim, H. M., Ateeq, A., Al-Khalifa, F. A., Alzoraiki, M., Milhem, M., & Almeer, S. (2024). Exploring the Implementation Efforts and Contributions of Green Building Rating Systems (GBRS) Among Stakeholders in Bahrain’s Real Estate Sector: A Qualitative Study. Studies in Systems, Decision and Control, 559–563. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-54379-1_49

Akin, I., & Akin, M. (2024). Promoting sustainable practices through green investments in the United Kingdom real estate industry. Sustainable Development. https://doi.org/10.1002/sd.3194

Ates, M. H., Cakan, C. D., & Koc, I. O. (2022). Comparative Performance Analysis of Sustainable Themed Funds with Traditional Funds in Turkey. Ekonomi, Politika & Finans Araştırmaları Dergisi, 7(IERFM Özel Sayısı), 123–139. https://doi.org/10.30784/epfad.1148841

Bungau, C. C., Bungau, T., Prada, I. F., & Prada, M. F. (2022). Green Buildings as a Necessity for Sustainable Environment Development: Dilemmas and Challenges. Sustainability, 14(20), 13121. https://doi.org/10.3390/su142013121

Chiu, P. H., Raghavan, V. S. G., Poh, H. J., Tan, E., Gabriela, O., Wong, N.-H., van Hooff, T., Blocken, B., Li, R., & Leong-Kok, S. M. (2017). CFD Methodology Development for Singapore Green Mark Building Application. Procedia Engineering, 180, 1596–1602. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.proeng.2017.04.322

Chuweni, N. N., Fauzi, N. S., Che Kasim, A., Mayangsari, S., & Wardhani, N. K. (2024). Assessing the effect of housing attributes and green certification on Malaysian house price. International Journal of Housing Markets and Analysis, 18(3), 712 – 728. https://doi.org/10.1108/ijhma-10-2023-0145

Eichholtz, P., Kok, N., & Yonder, E. (2012). Portfolio greenness and the financial performance of REITs. Journal of International Money and Finance, 31(7), 1911–1929. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jimonfin.2012.05.014

Far, A. H. (2023). Ascendas Real Estate Investment Trust’s focus is on sustainable business parks. Singapore Inc.: A Century of Business Success in Global Markets, 114–115. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781032660547-44

Guan, L. C. (2023). SPH REIT’s focus is on sustainable shopping malls. Routledge EBooks, 119–121. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781032660547-46

Han, Y., & Li, J. (2022). Should investors include green bonds in their portfolios? Evidence for the USA and Europe. International Review of Financial Analysis, 80, 101998. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.irfa.2021.101998

Handayani, A., & Rokhim, R. (2023). A Comparative Study of Financial Performance between Sustainable and Conventional Investment. Journal of Entrepreneurship and Business, 4(2), 114–124. https://doi.org/10.24123/jeb.v4i2.5691

Ho, K. H., Rengarajan, S., & Lum, Y. H. (2013). “Green” buildings and Real Estate Investment Trusts (REIT) performance. Journal of Property Investment & Finance, 31(6), 545–574. https://doi.org/10.1108/jpif-03-2013-0019

Hsieh, H. C., Claresta, V., & Bui, T. (2020). Green Building, Cost of Equity Capital and Corporate Governance: Evidence from US Real Estate Investment Trusts. Sustainability, 12(9), 3680. https://doi.org/10.3390/su12093680

Jamaludin, A. F., & Razali, M. N. (2024). Assessing the implementation of Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) by Southeast listed property companies. Pacific Rim Property Research Journal, 30. https://doi.org/10.64361/14445921.2024.212308

Lam, W. H., Wong, C. F., Tan, O. K., & Yap, B. H. (2024). Study on the Benefits of the Implementation of Green Building Rating in Malaysia. The Journal of the Institution of Engineers Malaysia, 85(1), 17-24. https://doi.org/10.54552/v85i1.226

Leskinen, N., Vimpari, J., & Junnila, S. (2020). A Review of the Impact of Green Building Certification on the Cash Flows and Values of Commercial Properties. Sustainability, 12(7), 2729. https://doi.org/10.3390/su12072729

Liu, T., Chen, L., Yang, M., Sandanayake, M., Miao, P., Shi, Y., & Yap, P.-S. (2022). Sustainability Considerations of Green Buildings: A Detailed Overview on Current Advancements and Future Considerations. Sustainability, 14(21), 14393. https://doi.org/10.3390/su142114393

Lonascu, E., Mironiuc, M., Anghel, I., & Huian, M. C. (2020). The Involvement of Real Estate Companies in Sustainable Development—An Analysis from the SDGs Reporting Perspective. Sustainability, 12(3), 798. https://doi.org/10.3390/su12030798

Mahmud, A., Rosli, H., & Hassan, N. (2024). Assessing the Impact of Regulatory Frameworks on the Success of Green Building Projects in Singapore. Frontiers in Management Science, 3(2), 58–66. https://doi.org/10.56397/fms.2024.04.07

Mangialardo, A., & Micelli, E. (2024). Is It Worth Investing in Green Real Estate? Empirical Evidence in the Office Sector of Milan. Green Energy and Technology, 305–314. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-53709-7_21

Mariani, M., Amoruso, P., Caragnano, A., & Zito, M. (2018). Green Real Estate: Does It Create Value? Financial and Sustainability Analysis on European Green REITs. International Journal of Business and Management, 13(7), 80-92. https://doi.org/10.5539/ijbm.v13n7p80

Mustika, N. W. M., Putra, I. D. G. D., Dwijendra, N. K. A., & Adhika, I. M. (2024). Green Building Certification Determining Factors in Bali, Indonesia for Contextual Sustainability. Civil Engineering and Architecture, 13(1), 1–20. https://doi.org/10.13189/cea.2025.130101

Newell, G., & Manaf, Z. (2008). The Significance of Sustainability Practices by the Malaysian Property Sector. Local Economy: The Journal of the Local Economy Policy Unit, 23(3), 152–167. https://doi.org/10.1080/02690940802197242

Razman, R., Khaw, S. T., Md Noh, N. I. F., Ng, J. L., Abdul Wahid, A. Z., & Yasin, M. N. (2023). Readiness of Malaysia’s construction industry in adopting green building rating tools. IOP Conference Series, 1205(1), 012031–012031. https://doi.org/10.1088/1755-1315/1205/1/012031

Simpeh, E. K., Smallwood, J. J., Ahadzie, D. K., & Mensah, H. (2021). Analytical taxonomy of challenges to the implementation of green building projects in South Africa. International Journal of Construction Management, 1–21. https://doi.org/10.1080/15623599.2020.1863172

Squier, H., & Booth, C. A. (2023). Insights from the Analysis of Sustainability Reporting Across UK Real Estate Companies. Journal of Sustainability Research, 5(2), 1-34. https://doi.org/10.20900/jsr20230005

Stahel, Zhu, L., & Wandabwa, C. K. (2025). Healthy building standards, their integration into green building practices and rating systems for one health. Discover Sustainability, 6(1), 1-11. https://doi.org/10.1007/s43621-025-01077-0

Usman, A. M., & Abdullah, K. (2018). Comparative Study on the Malaysian Sustainable Building Rating Systems. International Journal of Integrated Engineering, 10(3), 69-77. https://doi.org/10.30880/ijie.2018.10.03.012

Yue, X. G., Han, Y., Teresiene, D., Merkyte, J., & Liu, W. (2020). Sustainable Funds’ Performance Evaluation. Sustainability, 12(19), 8034. https://doi.org/10.3390/su12198034

Zahid, M., Ghazali, Z., & Rahman, H. U. (2016). Corporate Sustainability Practices & Reporing: A Case of Malaysian REITs and Property Listed Companies. International Journal of Economics and Financial Issues, 6(2), 688–693. https://www.econjournals.com/index.php/ijefi/article/view/1531

Zhang, Y., Wang, H., Gao, W., Wang, F., Zhou, N., Kammen, D. M., & Ying, X. (2019). A Survey of the Status and Challenges of Green Building Development in Various Countries. Sustainability, 11(19), 5385. https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/11/19/5385

Zheng, Z., & Lee, C. L. (2025). A meta-analysis of ESG factors in the real estate investment trusts sector: exploring their impacts on REITs performance. Engineering Construction & Architectural Management. https://doi.org/10.1108/ecam-05-2024-0652

Downloads

Published

03-07-2026

Issue

Vol. 23 No. 2 (2026): Built Environment Journal

Section

Articles

License

Copyright (c) 2026 Nurin Iyazi Raman, Nor Nazihah Chuweni, Andrea Blake

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 DEED

Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 4.0 International

 

How to Cite

Assessing the Disclosure of Green-Rated Properties in Real Estate Investment Trust Portfolios. (2026). Built Environment Journal, 23(2). https://doi.org/10.24191/bej.v23i2.7436

Similar Articles

11-20 of 169

You may also start an advanced similarity search for this article.