Life is increasingly complex and less certain, as much of the market chat at Mipim will confirm. Sentiment in the EU seems more bearish than in the UK. That said, the consensus across all markets is that the year should end better than it started.
Significant UK and EU regulatory change is coming, much of which will require a shift from tick-box compliance to data-driven metrics. In the UK, the culture-shifting Building Safety Act 2022 will impose greater accountability and responsibility for fire and structural safety throughout a building’s lifecycle.
The UK’s Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards Regulations, which regulate leased properties’ energy performance certificates, will tighten significantly on 1 April 2023, with more to come.
Change is being driven by demand, with a tangible flight to quality by European investors and employees. Environmental regulation is driving closer scrutiny of supply chains, while compliance with the proposed Forced Labour Regulation will require full visibility of supply chains and clear risk-management protocols.
Keeping up with the pace of change will be expensive and complex, from physical and digital improvements to buildings, using data to demonstrate quantifiable regulatory compliance, and embedding efficiency and sustainability.
We need to act now to budget capex, collect data and reduce carbon footprints, so that we have the liquid, compliant, sustainable assets needed to capitalise on an improving market. In particular, we need to break down the data silos that hamper transparency, certainty and data-driven insights.
But amid this complexity, Mipim will remind us that real estate is, foremost, a relationships business. We are a resilient, innovative community because we gather together to collaborate, learn and bargain. Our ability to overcome complexity and uncertainty is powered not only by data but also by shared experience of past troubles, knowledge of our markets and collective ambitions for the future.
So, here’s to a successful Mipim for everyone.
Ian Wilkinson is international built environment sector leader at legal practice Osborne Clarke
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