Property ownership inventories - destiny or opportunity?

The economic value of properties on inventory at public authorities, private companies and associations can often be significantly enhanced. The prerequisite for this, however, is for owners to have a clear idea of their entire inventories and the condition of them. Strategic Real Estate Consultancy shows where still undiscovered opportunities lie, for instance in reducing operational and life cycle costs.

Drees & Sommer has been dealing with the economics of buildings for many years now, its constant focus placed on topics of operational costing. The strategic range reaches to everything from better cost efficiencies in buildings on inventory to partial modernisation, revitalisation and development and even to demolition and new construction or a simple sale of one property or another.

Analysing and listing inventories
Together with the clients, the Drees & Sommer teams develop a complete property profile for each object and summarise the results in a general overview. Each profile forms the basis for the inventory on that particular property. It includes the location, an overview of the lot, the structural and technical inventory on it, its use and the running costs such use entails. It also encompasses upcoming maintenance and renovation costs. The strengths and weaknesses of each individual property are then evaluated using an integrated scoring model. This allows the investment crests that often develop from the age of many buildings to be anticipated and planned for before they can occur.

Identifying costs
To create a long-term strategy, it is necessary to recognise operational and life-cycle costs clearly. To do just this, the team uses the year of construction, the condition of the property and base costing values to calculate the costs required for investments in renovation, maintenance and restoration.
Working out the results
The results from this well-founded analysis also display the potentials for expanding or developing various locations. Sales potentials are sometimes also revealed as part of this process.

Laying out a strategy
Investments can then be sensibly prioritised when the results are viewed in their total context and brought into line with the client's goals and financial prospects. Strategic Real Estate Consulting thus strives to show not only advantages that have short-term effects, such as lower operating costs due to better operational organisation, for instance, but also the long-term merits of the property. Clients receive a sound basis for making lasting decisions about their inventory. These can include everything from decisions on renovation to outright sale of the property, for instance when additional funds for other construction projects are required.

Project example: The "Beschützende Werkstätten" (Helping Hands Workshops) in Heilbronn are having 25 properties reviewed
Around 25 properties belonging to the "Beschützende Werkstätten" Heilbronn with a total of 60,000 square metres were scrutinised by Drees & Sommer. In this context, a variety of properties have been checked for, among other things, potential energy savings. The focus here has been on energy consumption figures and the costs for energy and water utilities. Using this as a basis, the workshops decided, for instance, to bring forward the addition of a new heating unit that will pay off in just a few years due to the rising energy prices. Within the total context of the review, the analysis has also shown that room to expand is limited but still available. They are presently looking into the purchase of additional properties.

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