John Forester, vice president of energy & sustainability at The RMR Group, sat down for a video interview at Nareit’s REITwise: 2026 Educational Conference in Hollywood, Florida, March 24–26.
Forester emphasized that energy management is deeply embedded across the full lifecycle of real estate investing—from underwriting and acquisitions through operations and even disposition. At RMR, energy considerations are not siloed but integrated into core business strategy, he said.
“Energy management is a fundamental role,” Forester noted, highlighting its importance in both evaluating new investments and communicating value at exit.
A key theme was the dual lens of risk and opportunity. Different property types require tailored approaches depending on how energy costs and risks flow through leases and operating structures.
“Each asset type has a little bit different of a strategy,” Forester said, adding that RMR carefully evaluates both financial and reputational exposure. “There’s both a financial risk and a reputation risk, and we like to make sure we have our I’s dotted and our T’s crossed.”
Looking ahead, Forester identified value creation and regulatory compliance as the primary drivers of energy-related investments. Building performance standards are expanding across major U.S. markets, making compliance essential. Still, the ultimate filter remains financial performance: “When we can be accretive, when we can add value to the asset, those are going to be the projects that get approved.”