Lawyer Karin Sammer from the Austrian Association of the Real Estate Industry (ÖVI): You do not have to accept a unilateral change to your contract. A green lease usually refers to clauses in a “green” rental agreement that aim to encourage the tenant to use as sustainably as possible and the landlord to manage it as sustainably as possible. Common Subject Areas to be Regulated Contracts a Constant use Data on energy, water consumption and waste generation in current operations, such as energy-saving lighting, household appliances or environmentally friendly cleaning products, agreements on waste reduction, agreement to implement climate-friendly measures to increase efficiency and (reciprocal) information and disclosure obligations.
Such green lease clauses are not yet widely used in residential tenancy agreements. However, these will increase in the future, especially as large companies will be required to record detailed energy and consumption data for their assets in compliance with EU sustainability criteria (ESG Strategies Taxonomy Regulation). Legally, they are “Consistency Rules” Still an uncertain and delicate area, especially if tenants are required to behave in a certain way. The acceptability of such agreements will be measured by the extent to which they do not conflict with the applicable legal situation and, further, by the extent to which they withstand the strictest clause tests.
