Commercial properties operate under very different performance metrics. The KPIs that matter to hotels aren’t the same as those driving residential buildings, student housing, or senior living communities. Yet despite these differences, all commercial properties share two realities: energy costs are a major component of operating expenses, and energy demand rises sharply during peak seasons.
What defines a “peak season” depends on the property. For some, it’s driven by tourism cycles or academic calendars. For others, it’s the impact of extreme weather during summer or winter months. Regardless of the cause, these periods consistently bring higher energy consumption and higher costs.
The good news is that peak energy expenses don’t have to be accepted as unavoidable. With the right energy management strategies in place, commercial property managers can actively control consumption during high-demand periods, reduce operational overhead, and protect profitability when energy use is at its highest.
Smart Thermostats
Since heating and cooling costs are those that fluctuate the most with seasonality, and since heating and cooling energy consumption starts with thermostat settings, smart thermostats are the first place commercial property managers should look to reduce seasonal costs.
Specifically, smart thermostats allow property managers (or their residents or guests) to pre-program climate control settings around their actual occupancy requirement. So while a guest is seeing the sites, a resident is out at work, a stud is in class, thermostat can be programmed to reduce their heating/cooling energy consumption, but re-adjust to their occupants preferences prior to their return. This allows occupants to reduce their carbon footprint, while also reducing energy costs for property managers.
This is why not all smart thermostats are created equal. Whereas consumer-grade brands (such as Nest and Ecobee) are perfectly suitable for single family properties, commercial properties with centralized HVAC systems require commercial-grade smart thermostats that are capable of managing not only multiple units with different occupancy patterns, but common areas, as well.
Integrated Occupancy Sensors
Specifically, commercial grade smart thermostats are not limited simply to pre-programmed settings. Indeed, not all occupants will even consider presetting or configuring their climate control preferences upon arrival.
This is where occupancy sensors come in. Essentially, occupancy sensors allow commercial property managers to respond to real-time fluctuations in occupancy patterns. Indeed, both Verdant’s VX and ZX occupancy sensors integrate seamlessly not only with our smart thermostats, but also with many third-party lighting systems. This reduces energy consumption on multiple fronts.
Smart HVAC Systems
While smart thermostats (such as Verdant’s ZX and VX thermostats), allow property managers (and/or occupants) to reduce energy consumption and costs through pre-programmed settings, they are only the front-end of the energy management equation. Even more important (and effective) is the back-end of energy management — i.e smart HVAC systems.
Specifically, smart HVAC energy management systems integrate alongside smart thermostats, occupancy sensors, and even door/window sensors to reduce their HVAC runtime by up to 40%. In other words, they ensure that any given space is not overheated or overcooled when no one is occupying it.
It’s worth noting, moreover, that smart HVAC systems have the lowest payback/breakeven period of any other energy management technology — with some commercial property managers recouping their investment in as little as 12 months. And that ROI from smart HVAC technology is so significant, in fact, that it increases the resale value of a commercial. Indeed, this energy management technology is already a standard practice in the hotel industry.
Real-Time Demand Management
For instance, the real-time energy management features of HVAC systems extend beyond mere climate control automation. The Verdant energy management system integrates with smart thermostats and occupancy sensors to aggregate real-time data on occupancy patterns and peak demand loads to optimize energy consumption in the moment.
Energy Monitoring & Performance Analytics
Reducing energy costs during peak seasons requires more than automation alone. Property managers also need clear visibility into when, where, and how energy is being consumed. Without consistent monitoring, seasonal inefficiencies often go unnoticed until they appear on utility bills. Energy monitoring tools, such as the Verdant Thermostat Manager, allow operators to track usage patterns over time, compare peak and off-peak performance, and identify areas where consumption is higher than expected during periods of increased demand.
By reviewing performance data at the room, floor, or building level, property managers can make informed adjustments to their energy strategies as conditions change. This might include refining temperature ranges, adjusting setback schedules, or addressing recurring inefficiencies in specific areas of a property. Over time, performance analytics help transform energy management from a reactive process into a proactive one supporting cost control during peak seasons while maintaining operational stability.
Portfolio-Level Energy Standardization
For organizations managing multiple buildings, peak-season energy costs can escalate quickly when each property operates under different control strategies. Portfolio-level standardization helps reduce this complexity by applying consistent energy policies across locations, while still allowing flexibility for regional climate differences. Establishing shared benchmarks and operating parameters enables property managers to manage seasonal demand more efficiently and avoid uneven performance between sites.
Standardized energy management also simplifies oversight and long-term planning. With consistent systems and controls in place, operators can more easily evaluate performance across properties, identify best practices, and implement improvements at scale. This coordinated approach is especially valuable during peak seasons, when even small inefficiencies—multiplied across a portfolio—can significantly impact operating costs.
Adaptive Setbacks
Energy use fluctuates constantly. It shifts throughout the day, changes with the seasons, and is influenced by varying heat loads in individual rooms over time. Smart thermostats that support adaptive setbacks respond to these changes automatically, adjusting temperature settings within predefined limits to reduce unnecessary energy use—without requiring staff or residents to intervene. As a result, HVAC systems operate only when needed, based on real occupancy conditions and operational priorities.
With smart setback functionality, property teams can establish temperature ranges that maintain comfort while minimizing waste. These ranges can be narrowed during periods of low activity or expanded when demand is lower, helping to cut HVAC runtime without compromising guest or resident experience during peak usage.
Automated Zone Control
Of course, smart HVAC systems are not limited to optimizing just aggregate energy consumption around real-time occupancy patterns and seasonal thermodynamics. They also help property managers segment the different zones/areas of the properties, and automate and optimize the energy consumption of those respective areas based on occupant needs.
For instance, a private occupant unit requires a much more accurate level of comfort than does a common area — such as a lobby or recreation room. By compartmentalizing these areas through a smart HVAC system, property managers can be sure that occupants enjoy maximum comfort in their private units without overly heating/cooling common areas that the majority of occupants use much more sporadically.
Air Source Heat Pumps
Smart thermostats and HVAC systems aren’t the only hardware upgrades that commercial property managers can make invest in to reduce their energy costs and consumption during peak demand times. Air Source Heat Pumps (ASHPs) can also reduce HVAC costs and consumption during peak seasons.
Specifically, ASHPs transfer cold or warm air from outside to the interior, supplementing both HVAC energy grid consumption. In other words, Air Source Heat Pumps reduce HVAC runtimes, and reduce overall energy consumption.
Furthermore, ASHPs can also be employed as energy efficient space heaters or coolers, and help manage energy consumption in areas of a commercial property that are thermodynamically problematic — such as common areas that are poorly insulated, or high-traffic areas.
Smart Energy Efficient Appliances
Of course, energy consumption isn’t limited to HVAC or other climate control systems. Indeed, occupants and staff, alike, also rely on a number of appliances to provide many core essential amenities.
After all, a significant source of energy costs in hotels stems from what’s called “vampire power draw”, also known as standby power. Essentially, standby power refers to the way “electric power is consumed by electronic appliances and equipment when they are switched off, but are still plugged in and on standby mode.
Consequently, many commercial property managers rely on energy efficient appliances to reduce their property’s energy consumption and costs. The most common energy efficient appliances include ENERGY STAR Certified refrigerators and laundry appliances, responsive smart thermostats, high-efficiency air conditioners, and LED lighting.
Demand Response
All this being said, when it comes to energy management, smart thermostats, smart HVAC, and other various appliances are all reactive. However, there are measures that commercial property managers can take that are much more reactive — i.e. curb energy consumption before it becomes a line item on their balance sheet.
Specifically, Demand Response programs allow commercial property managers to receive credits against their energy costs whenever they choose to reduce their consumption during peak demand times.
Through a Demand Response program, commercial managers receive alerts prior to forecasted peak usage ‘events’. And unless they opt-out of that event, their various smart appliances (whether they be HVAC systems, water heaters, etc.) will adjust to draw less energy from the grid during that event
Consequently, commercial property managers can then sell that energy back into the grid. And that revenue can then be applied against their energy bills, reducing their seasonal energy costs.
Optimizing your Commercial Property’s Energy Consumption
Shelter is arguably a basic human need for every man. Woman, and child on this Earth. That being said, there are many forms of shelter that that need might take: caves or huts, turnkey residences, or medium- to long-term accommodations
What’s universal for all those scenarios is that these residential units require basic climate control. More to the point, for those property managers managing these units, energy consumption is their greatest overhead.
That being said, there is no shortage of technologies that property managers can leverage to both (1) reduce energy consumption, and (2) improve the profitability of their properties.
Unlock Energy Savings at Your Property with Verdant Thermostats
Managing energy costs, especially during peak seasons, requires more than isolated upgrades. Verdant’s energy management solutions are designed to help commercial properties reduce consumption, improve operational efficiency, and maintain consistent comfort across every space. By combining intelligent controls, real-time insights, and scalable management, Verdant enables property teams to take a proactive approach to energy optimization.
Whether you manage a single property or an entire portfolio, Verdant helps turn energy management into a measurable advantage—lowering utility costs, supporting sustainability goals, and delivering long-term value.