UDR ESG — Elevated Excellence

Chairman and CEO Message

We are delighted to share with you our 6th annual ESG report, which highlights UDR’s ongoing and robust commitment to being an ESG leader. Realizing tangible progress towards our ESG goals is imperative as successful execution (1) helps to support and enrich our cultural values, (2) shows stakeholders UDR is committed to doing its part on ESG, and (3) enhances our bottom–line results.

Regarding UDR’s strategic vision and future goals, a foundational principal we have adhered to over my tenure as Chairman and CEO is “listen to our associates, listen to our residents, and listen to our investors”. This principle is a key driver of our company’s culture, and the feedback received from these diverse groups often provides the most actionable information regarding where we are excelling and where we can improve. ESG is no different and I believe our future ESG successes will largely be driven by continuing to listen and then implementing what we learn. Putting this mantra into action over the past year, we,

• Listened to the needs of our associates more so than ever by conducting quarterly “pulse” surveys to better understand how our associates view their experiences at UDR. We received approximately 6,900 associate responses in 2023 and 2024 thus far, all of which have helped to shape and refine our approaches towards benefits, training, employee retention, etc.;
• Listened to our residents by delving more deeply into their living experience with UDR through our Customer Experience Project (“CEP”). The CEP helps to improve our residents’ UDR experience and reduce resident turnover over time. This includes aiming to identify when our interactions with residents are successful or unsuccessful as these touch points can increase or decrease a resident’s likelihood of continuing to live with us. We built and calibrated the CEP using approximately 650 million historical resident–focused data points; and;
• Listened to our investors through 708 interactions (85% of our outstanding common share count) in 2023 and early 2024 to better understand their views on our strategy and its execution.

Continuing to evolve our already strong culture so that it remains adaptable to ever–changing stakeholder wants and needs will remain key to our future success. We are hard at work to ensure that the feedback we receive from all stakeholders is not only heard but acted upon when appropriate.

As outlined in this report, we have continuously improved ESG over time at UDR. Noteworthy recent achievements include:

• Lowering our 2023 portfolio–wide Scope 1 and 2 greenhouse gas (“GHG”) emissions intensity by 20% below our 2020 baseline year and halfway to our 40% reduction target expected to be achieved by 2035. We anticipate further improvement in the coming years as GHG emissions reduction initiatives are implemented at more of our apartment communities.
• Deploying GHG emissions reducing initiatives over the past year into certain markets where we operate that are subject to BPS, being New York City, Washington, D.C., and Denver. These initiatives are estimated to reduce our total GHG emissions from energy in those markets by 10% in the coming years. Looking ahead, we plan to expand our GHG emissions reduction scope beyond BPS markets to systematically decarbonize a greater percentage of our portfolio.
• Certifying an additional seven UDR apartment communities as sustainable during 2023, bringing our total to 36 communities. Sustainable communities are more desirable for our residents while driving revenue and expense efficiencies that create value for other stakeholders.
• Receiving recognition for our ESG efforts including being named a 2024 National Top Workplaces winner in the Real Estate Industry and named to Newsweek’s America’s Most Sustainable Companies for the third consecutive year in 2024.

Collectively, these are significant accomplishments and are emblematic of our ongoing commitment to enhancing our ESG as ESG itself continues to evolve. My gratitude goes out to the entire UDR team, who showcase innovation and dedication daily to make UDR a better ESG steward.

As you read through our 2024 ESG Report, you will note that many of our ESG goals and disclosures tie to the UN Sustainable Development Goals (“SDGs”) as well as the GRI, SASB, and TCFD standards. Each serve as an important framework for decision making and goal setting across E, S, and G. Our aim is to provide full transparency around how UDR’s ESG efforts meet external requirements while encouraging our associates and residents to take an active role in achieving our sustainability goals.

Lastly, UDR’s capable and diverse Board of Directors (“Board”) and executive team remain firmly committed to advancing ESG and continuing to reduce our carbon footprint when economically viable and where appropriate. Our Board remains highly engaged across a variety of E, S, and G topics, receiving annual strategy updates and more specified progress updates at least quarterly. In addition, a portion of our senior corporate and field leaderships’ annual compensation remains dependent on whether we meet certain predetermined ESG–related goals. Continuing to foster an environment that encourages honest discussion and seeks to include diverse perspectives is key to our ultimate ESG success, and, as is evident, continues to be stressed at the highest levels.

I sincerely hope you find our 2024 ESG Report insightful and can appreciate the significant contributions UDR associates have made to turn our ESG goals into reality.

Sincerely,

Thomas W. Toomey
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer