John Forester, vice chairman of vitality & sustainability at The RMR Group, sat down for a video interview at Nareit’s REITwise: 2026 Academic Convention in Hollywood, Florida, March 24–26.
Forester emphasised that vitality administration is deeply embedded throughout the total lifecycle of actual property investing—from underwriting and acquisitions by means of operations and even disposition. At RMR, vitality concerns should not siloed however built-in into core enterprise technique, he stated.
“Power administration is a elementary position,” Forester famous, highlighting its significance in each evaluating new investments and speaking worth at exit.
A key theme was the twin lens of threat and alternative. Totally different property sorts require tailor-made approaches relying on how vitality prices and dangers movement by means of leases and working buildings.
“Every asset kind has a bit of bit completely different of a method,” Forester stated, including that RMR rigorously evaluates each monetary and reputational publicity. “There’s each a monetary threat and a repute threat, and we like to ensure now we have our I’s dotted and our T’s crossed.”
Wanting forward, Forester recognized worth creation and regulatory compliance as the first drivers of energy-related investments. Constructing efficiency requirements are increasing throughout main U.S. markets, making compliance important. Nonetheless, the final word filter stays monetary efficiency: “After we may be accretive, once we can add worth to the asset, these are going to be the tasks that get permitted.”
