Carbon footprint

The carbon roadmap outlines the measures through which we will reduce the greenhouse gas emissions of our operations in line with our established targets.

At present, we are not pursuing carbon neutrality, as achieving this goal would require the use of carbon offsets. For a non-profit foundation, offsetting would represent a significant cost that would ultimately be reflected in residents’ rents. In addition, uncertainties remain regarding the effectiveness of carbon offset projects. Challenges include ensuring the additionality, permanence, and verifiability of emission reductions. The planning, evaluation, and monitoring of high-quality offsetting also require specialist expertise and dedicated resources. For these reasons, our primary focus is on reducing emissions from our own operations as effectively as possible.

We are committed to emission reduction targets aligned with the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi). While the SBTi provides organizations with the opportunity to have their targets independently validated, foundation targets are not currently eligible for validation. As a result, our targets cannot be formally verified by the SBTi, even though they are based on the same science-based principles.

Our single largest source of emissions is currently capital assets, namely new construction and major renovation projects. Because our operations involve both new developments and renovation work, their impact on our carbon footprint is significant. The volume of construction activity varies from year to year, which means that emissions can also fluctuate considerably between reporting years.

In our carbon footprint calculations, emissions from construction projects are allocated to the year in which the project is completed. This may lead to significant annual variations in the results, particularly in years when there are unusually high or low numbers of completed construction and renovation projects.

In addition to tracking total emissions, we also monitor emission intensity relative to revenue and residential floor area. These indicators allow us to assess emission trends over the long term and compare results between years regardless of fluctuations in construction activity. This helps ensure that our emissions reduction efforts are progressing in the right direction, even when the results of individual years vary.

Scope 1 includes direct emissions from the company’s own operations. These include, for example, the fuel used by company cars or purchased computers and phones. These emissions are often the easiest to address because they are directly linked to the company’s operations.

Scope 1 emissions account for 0.1% (18 tCO₂e) of our total carbon footprint. In 2024, these emissions amounted to 24 tCO₂e, meaning emissions in this category have decreased compared to the previous year.Due to a change in the calculation methodology, refrigerant refill quantities are not included in the 2025 calculations.

At present, it is not crucial to take major actions to reduce Scope 1 emissions, as 99.9% of our total emissions come from other sources. It is more efficient to focus on small, low-cost improvements where possible.

Scope 2 includes purchased energy – essentially the electricity and heating bought by Hoas.

Scope 2 accounts for 0% of our total emissions, or 0 tCO₂e, based on the market-based calculation method. In 2024, the market-based emissions from purchased energy were also 0 tCO₂e.

Market-based calculation uses the emission factor provided by each energy supplier. Since Hoas purchases all its energy either from fossil-free sources or by acquiring renewable energy certificates equal to our consumption, the emission factor is zero.

If the location-based method were used – applying national average emission factors regardless of energy source – the emissions in this category would be 8 162 tCO₂e. Currently, Hoas’s largest single emission source is fixed assets, which account for 5 732 tCO₂e. Therefore, if we did not use renewable energy, purchased energy would be our largest emission source.

As of October 2023, all purchased energy has been sourced from renewable energy providers, making it zero-emissions.

Scope 3 refers to indirect emissions that occur outside an organization’s own operations but are linked to Hoas’s activities. These include emissions arising from the procurement of materials and services, waste and water management, as well as construction and renovation projects. Scope 3 emissions often account for the largest share of an organization’s total greenhouse gas emissions and are divided into 15 separate categories.

In 2025, Scope 3 emissions accounted for 99.9% of Hoas’s total emissions, or 16 449 tCO₂e. In 2024, Scope 3 emissions were 17 704 tCO₂e – so emissions have decreased.

To reduce construction-related emissions, we follow a low-carbon construction guideline that influences the carbon footprint of our new buildings. In 2024, the emissions of new development project were calculated based on project-specific emission assessments rather than general coefficients.

Purchased goods and services are one of our most significant sources of emissions. These include emissions generated by property maintenance activities and the operations of our other service partners. Our goal is to further develop emissions accounting in collaboration with our largest partners to obtain more accurate information on the climate impacts of our procurement activities.

More detailed data will help us identify the most effective emission reduction measures and develop partner-specific emission reduction pathways for the services we purchase. In 2025, several of our partners provided Hoas with supplier-specific emissions data, significantly improving the accuracy of our carbon footprint calculations.

In practice, the difference between material-based calculations and cost-based calculations is that the cost-based methods do not account for what is actually purchased. For example, switching to electric vehicles might increase costs, which in turn inflates emissions in cost-based calculations, even though actual emissions decrease. Material-based methods reflect how money is spent and what actual emissions lie behind each used euro.

For example, in property maintenance services, the introduction of supplier-specific emissions data reduced the estimated carbon footprint from 3,045 tCO₂e to 940 tCO₂e. This highlights how more accurate data can provide a more reliable representation of actual emissions.

Emissions from energy production are difficult to influence directly with the tools currently available. They are caused, for example, by the construction of infrastructure needed for energy production. The only realistic way we can impact these emissions is by improving energy efficiency, thereby reducing overall energy consumption. We are making efforts to improve our energy efficiency constantly.