UDR ESG — Elevated Excellence
Our Commitment to Environmental, Social, and Governance Responsibilities
At UDR, we understand the impact our business can have on the environment and upon our stakeholders. Our Environmental (“E”), Social (“S”), and Governance (“G”) (collectively “ESG”) efforts assist us in identifying and managing our sustainability risks and opportunities. Our ESG improvements are designed to improve operational quality, improve associate and resident retention, and reduce our impact on the environment. The 2024 ESG Report demonstrates our work in environmental sustainability, our investments in our associates, our residents, and the communities in which we operate, and our dedication to sound corporate governance. We are constantly working towards elevated excellence in ESG as it relates to our stakeholders and our bottom line.
For any questions about ESG at UDR, please contact UDR’s ESG Team at [email protected]
Download the Full ReportAwards
National Top Workplaces
2024
Newsweek America's Most Responsible Companies
2024, 2023, 2022
GRESB Awards
Sector Leader: 2023, 2021
5-Star Rating: 2022
Logical Buildings Smart Buildings Innovator of the Year
2021, 2020
NAA Awards
2020 Excellence in Technology & Innovation Award
2020 Silver Sustainable Living Innovation Award
In the News
UDR Achieves GRESB 5 Star Rating
2021 GRESB Top Listed Residential Company - Score 86
Other Reports
ESG Reports
2023, 2022, 2021, 2020, 2019
Environmental Metrics and Independent Assurance Statements
2023, 2022, 2021, 2020
Named a 2024 National Top Workplaces winner in the Real Estate Industry
Aligned with 10 UN Sustainable Development Goals ("SDGs")
Adopted Scope 1 & 2 emissions intensity reduction of 40% and a Scope 3 emissions intensity reduction of 30% from 2020–2035
Diversity, equity, and inclusion (“DEI”) metrics are included in our senior executive team’s short–term incentive (“STI”) program
Turnover rate achieved for 2023, lower than the industry standard
On–site solar generation has generated a cumulative 5 million kilowatt hours (“kWh”) of renewable energy since 2019
Committed $30 million to climate and sustainability funds
Quarterly associate pulse surveys to assess engagement, benefits, and more
Named Outstanding Developer/Builder of the Year as part of the 2024 LEED Homes Awards
of associates believe there is open and honest communication at UDR, exceeding the industry average of 69%
Interactions with our shareholders in 2023 and early 2024, representing 85% of common stock outstanding
of Common Area Electric Consumption procured from Renewable Energy Sources
UDR ESG Methodology
Materiality Assessment
To prioritize ESG topics to include in our disclosures, we rank each topic in terms of relative significance of how each topic influences stakeholder decisions and the relevant impact UDR has on the economic, environmental, and social aspects of each topic within UDR’s ecosystem. The topics and their rankings are periodically reviewed by senior leadership through a survey to reflect current ESG initiatives and relevant ESG engagement across our stakeholder groups. The results of our most recent survey are shown in our Materiality Assessment Table, while our ESG Report includes additional information concerning our management of the topics and relevant actions taken.
With regards to our ESG reporting, any use of the terms “material,” “materiality,” “immaterial,” “substantive,” “significant” and other similar terminology refers to the expected significance of our potential impact on economic, environmental and social topics or to topics or standards designated as “material” or “substantive” under the GRI standards, SASB standards or TCFD framework. These terms as used in our ESG reporting are not used, or intended to be construed, as they have been defined by or construed in accordance with the securities laws or any other laws of the United States or any other jurisdiction, or as these terms are used in the context of financial statements and financial reporting.
ESG Governance
Starting in 2021, our Governance Committee Charter was amended to assign the Governance Committee oversight of the Company’s ESG disclosures, including any ESG report that is published. Sustainability is incorporated into UDR’s overall risk assessments, and the Board provides risk oversight. Continued discussions of ESG during Board meetings have focused on how we can further integrate human capital into our overall business and updates on our refreshed Sustainability Strategy, including progress towards our science–based emissions reduction targets and mitigation of climate–related risk. These discussions will continue to evolve as we seek to enhance our commitment to ESG and further align the Company’s sustainability objectives with those of our stakeholders.
UDR’s ESG Committee, made up of senior officers at the Company, sets Company–wide ESG targets, goals, and strategy in conjunction with the Board. Chairman and CEO, Tom Toomey, steers the Committee which approves the ESG strategy, while UDR’s other members are responsible for implementing and monitoring progress towards meeting ESG targets and goals, evaluating the integrity of the Company’s overall ESG reporting processes, and assessing the vision of our sustainability objectives. As part of our EMS process, we conduct third–party and internal assurance testing of the accuracy and completeness of significant ESG metrics. These include GHG emissions, energy usage, water usage, waste diversion, associate compensation, diversity, training, and gender metrics included in our 2024 ESG report and the 2024 GRESB survey.
United Nations Sustainable Development Goals
In our 2022 ESG Report, UDR announced the alignment of our ESG goals with 10 of the 17 United Nations SDGs that we believe are the most relevant to our industry. To illustrate our continued commitment to these 10 goals, we have listed examples of contributions towards each selected goal with additional information available in our 2024 ESG Report.
In 2023 we enhanced our benefits package in 2023 based on associate feedback, including the reduction of the waiting period for benefits to kick in and 401(k) auto–enrollment for new hires, the addition of teen mental–health support to our associate resource program, and the opportunity for eligible associates to ,”sell back“ a portion of their accrued and unused vacation time to the company.
UDR incorporates gender–based compensation ratios into our annual compensation analysis, and the ratios, our EEO–1 table, as well as promotion metrics by gender are included in our ESG disclosures to provide transparency and track our efforts on this matter over time.
UDR continues to utilize water management and leak detection technology. In 2023, we used over 15,978,000 gallons of reclaimed water for irrigation purposes, thereby reducing our use of potable water.
In 2023, UDR produced over 1 million kWh of renewable energy through onsite solar and retired Green-e certified renewable energy credits (“RECs”) representing 33,903,000 kWh of energy usage. We continue to evaluate opportunities to implement renewable energy technologies to additional apartment communities.
In 2023, UDR achieved an associate turnover rate of 22%, which is lower than the industry standard of 40% (based on NAREIT and CEL data) and reduced the average number of open positions and time to fill metric by 50% from January 2023 to December 2023, despite the more challenging hiring environment post pandemic.
Over the last nine years we have completed over 300 sustainability projects to promote more efficient water and energy consumption and more sustainable waste management. We also have invested in strategic ESG and Climate Technology Funds, with $30 million committed to help us identify real estate technologies intended to reduce our carbon footprint.
In 2023, we strengthened our partnership with the National Diversity Council and other third–party DEI organizations to provide resources and support to our associates. With regards to hiring, we scored 4.33 out of 5 on an internal metric that measures our abilities to include diverse candidates in the interview process.
In 2023, UDR obtained 7 sustainability certifications, increasing our total number of certified communities to 36 (representing over 19% of the portfolio). Additionally, our environmental goal related to sustainability certification set a minimum standard of LEED Silver or equivalent for new developments.
Throughout 2023, UDR continued to engage with our residents around sustainable consumption strategies with over 82,700 environmental communications.
In 2023, we continued to utilize our asset– and market–level climate related risk ranking to determine and search for ways to mitigate near– versus longer–term climate–related risks and to optimize opportunities that could impact the Company.
ESG Measurement and Reporting
Our ESG goals were originally established to promote sustainability across our business operations, further our inclusive and innovative culture, and create long–term value for our stakeholders. In 2023, we updated our environmental goals to align with science–based targets and to reflect our most recent Sustainability Strategy update, including Scope 1, 2, and 3 emissions intensity reduction targets, where emissions intensity is represented as kg carbon dioxide equivalent (”CO2e“) per square foot (”SF“). We continue to incorporate intensity–based energy, renewable energy procurement, water, and waste reduction goals as operating sustainably affects the carbon footprint of our entire value chain.
We report our progress on each goal and target to our ESG Committee, Board, and our stakeholders. Periodically, our goals and targets are reviewed to confirm alignment with our business strategy and our stakeholders.