Real estate is carbon-intensive. Operating and constructing buildings makes up 40% of the EU’s energy consumption – and the majority is from operations. All realistic net-zero pathways have decarbonising buildings as a central part. But we’re behind target. The residential retrofit rate in Germany has hovered at 1% of housing stock for the last few years. At this rate it will take over a century to decarbonise residential buildings alone (way beyond our targets).

Across the world real estate developers and cities are planning, building and retrofitting buildings and urban districts with the aim of reducing the environmental impact of the built environment. The path to net-zero requires the development and implementation of a renewable energy strategy. In this article, we will discuss the challenges associated with integrating green energy production on-site, and how innovative technologies can address those challenges while opening new opportunities.

The United Nations predicts that European renewable energy usage will double by 2027. Germany set a new record by generating 57.7% of its net power from renewables in the first half of 2023. One of the biggest barriers to a 100% renewable grid however, is the variability of renewables. Wind and the sun are not constant, and the windiest and sunniest areas are often far from many cities.

Artificial intelligence (AI) is being increasingly utilised in the real estate industry to improve efficiency, enhance decision-making processes and offer personalised experiences to buyers and sellers. More and more startups and corporates are developing new value propositions along this value chain. We at PT1 believe that AI in real estate is revolutionary! PT1 is investing into more transformative real estate technologies, and we stand ready to support founders who are building in this space.

The housing industry is in a tough spot right now because of several problems. Some of the main issues are broken supply chains, rising costs and a shortage of labour. Factors such as global climate change, worldwide conflicts and the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic are exacerbating the situation.