EDITORIAL Green housing
Remington House Redefines
Green Housing in Johannesburg
TUHF’ s EDGE-certified conversion sets a new benchmark for sustainable, affordable living in the inner city.
TUHF has facilitated the complete conversion of Remington House on Nugget Street into an EDGEcertified mixed-use development, providing affordable and strategically located rental housing while demonstrating a replicable model for green inner-city regeneration.
The building is TUHF’ s first project to attain EDGE certification through its new partnership with the International Finance Corporation( IFC).
Once abandoned and later hijacked, the former office block has been revitalised through a brownfield refurbishment that preserved the structural frame, lift shafts, and much of the existing building fabric.
This approach lowered embodied carbon and reduced construction waste. Remington House now features five ground-floor retail units, 14 secure parking bays, and 133 self-contained bachelor flats across the podium and tower levels, supported by shared amenities such as a study centre and gym.
“ When Abiyot Kassa Ferede approached us, the building had been vacated and he sought funding for a residential conversion. We had worked with Abiyot on a similar high-rise redevelopment, so we knew he had the entrepreneurial ability we look for,” says Khumbulani Chikomo, Portfolio Manager at TUHF.“ Remington House shows what focused densification and the reuse of existing assets can deliver in the inner city. Our role was to structure the finance and assemble the right professional team to meet both quality and EDGE certification requirements.”
Key green features include centralised heat pumps replacing individual geysers, optimised glazing to minimise heat gain and loss, LED lighting, low-flow showers and taps, dual-flush toilets, and a solar backup system. The project achieved energy savings of 27.81 %, water savings of 22.40 %, and a 51.00 % reduction in embodied carbon in materials, compared to baseline.
Its location supports urban densification near employment hubs, universities, transport nodes, and amenities. While the design aimed at multifamily rental, market demand has shifted the building towards student accommodation without altering its residential use. Alongside two adjacent TUHF-supported developments, Remington House now forms part of an expanding student precinct housing nearly 1 000 students.
The project also demonstrates TUHF’ s green finance pathway with IFC. Successful EDGE certification qualifies the borrower for a performance-based incentive of $ 1 080 per unit( about R18 500), paid directly towards the loan, covering EDGE consulting fees and speeding up amortisation. This incentive is part of the wider TUHF – IFC initiative to expand affordable, environmentally friendly housing through advisory support and IFC’ s Market Accelerator for Green Construction( MAGC).
“ The‘ greening’ is not merely cosmetic,” Chikomo states.“ It stabilises operating costs for entrepreneurs and protects tenants from service failures, thereby improving both affordability and quality of life. Remington House demonstrates that certified green outcomes are achievable in affordable rental housing and are financially viable when structured properly.” ■
Project facts
• Location: Nugget Street, Johannesburg CBD; brownfields conversion of a vacant, hijacked office building( 7 191m ² gross building area)
• Programme: 5 retail units; 14 parking bays; 133 bachelor units; study centre and gym
• Resource systems: centralised heat pumps; solar installation; borehole and filtration; LED lighting; low-flow fixtures; dualflush toilets; optimised glazing
• EDGE results: energy 27.81 %; water 22.40 %; materials( embodied carbon) 51.00 %
• IFC incentives: $ 1 080 per EDGE-certified unit toward loan settlement; advisory and PBI support via IFC / MAGC
44 www. sabuildingreview. co. za