Japan’s 2026 real estate sustainability transparency trends
October 6, 2026 / By Naoko Iwanaga
JLL’s Global Real Estate Transparency Index (GRETI) is widely adopted by investors, lenders and corporate occupiers as a global benchmark for measuring transparency in property markets. Covering 88 countries and territories, the index has evolved beyond being a measure of market maturity. It increasingly serves as an indicator of a market’s attractiveness to global capital. In fact, markets with the highest transparency account for more than 80% of global direct real estate investment volume. One component of GRETI is the Sustainability Index, which assesses transparency across ten sub-indices covering energy efficiency, climate change, green building certification, resilience and natural capital.
Japan ranks third in the 2026 index
In the 2026 Sustainability Index, Japan ranked third globally, down one place compared with the previous survey. A closer look at the underlying indicators, however, reveals that important developments took place over the intervening two years.
Since the previous survey, several developments have strengthened Japan’s sustainability framework, including:
- The amendment to the Building Energy Efficiency Act expanded mandatory compliance with energy-efficiency standards to all new buildings
- The introduction of GX-ETS broadened the policy focus beyond energy efficiency to include carbon management and emissions accountability
- Sustainability Standards Board of Japan (SSBJ) sustainability standards, aligned with International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) standards, moved towards mandatory implementation under the Financial Instruments and Exchange Act.
- J-CAT was introduced to support life-cycle carbon assessment of buildings
- TSUNAG was launched to promote the evaluation of biodiversity and nature-related risks
Implementation accelerates
These developments indicate that the past two years have been characterised less by the creation of entirely new frameworks and more by the deepening and implementation of existing ones. In other words, recent progress has been driven by broader adoption, stronger requirements and improved implementation, rather than the introduction of new sustainability frameworks.
Room for improvement remains
Nevertheless, opportunities for further improvement remain. In the area of carbon management, mandatory emissions-reduction obligations remain limited to selected jurisdictions. Most regions rely primarily on reporting requirements and voluntary efforts. The adoption of green lease clauses has also expanded among major investors, property owners and J-REITs, but their use remains largely voluntary rather than standard market practice.
Continuous efforts for resilience
Japan’s sustainability transparency extends beyond recent decarbonisation initiatives. Highly exposed to earthquakes, typhoons and other natural hazards, Japan has developed and refined disaster-prevention and resilience frameworks including building standards, seismic regulations, disaster mitigation measures and Business Continuity Plan (BCP) certification schemes over the past 100+ years, predating the global focus on climate change countermeasures. This institutional effort continues to support Japan’s strong performance in resilience-related indicators.
Japan’s sustainability progress also aligns with its broader GX agenda and national decarbonisation commitments, including carbon neutrality by 2050 and emissions-reduction targets for FY2035 and FY2040 aligned with the 1.5°C target.
The 2026 results suggest that Japan’s sustainability transparency is evolving from a phase of framework development to one of implementation and execution. The foundations underpinning sustainability transparency have continued to strengthen.
