Will Labour ever turn to PRS landlords to help them out?
10 months ago | 21 comments
Landlords are not cash cows – but we are caught up in the EPC net
9:59 AM, 20th June 2025, 10 months ago
21
Are there any other landlords who are fed up with the narrative that we are swimming in wealth, ready to splash out thousands on energy performance certificate (EPC) upgrades?
This is a tired trope that needs debunking especially since tenant advocacy groups like Generation Rent claim landlords can ‘easily afford’ the costly upgrades required to meet the government’s ambitious EPC C targets by 2030, with new tenancies facing the deadline as early as 2028.
This assertion assumes landlords are sitting on piles of cash, unburdened by mortgages or the spiralling costs of maintaining rental properties.
The reality is far less rosy, and the government’s pitiful lack of joined up thinking on policies affecting the PRS only tightens the noose around the sector.
Let’s start with the numbers since research from epIMS estimates that upgrading the 2.58 million private rental properties currently below an EPC C rating could cost landlords a staggering £19.8 billion, with an average cost of £8,000 per property.
In London, where 1.2 million rental homes need upgrades, the bill could hit £4.7 billion, with costs averaging £9,000 per property.
For a landlord with a portfolio of eight properties, that’s a potential £64,000 hit over the next five years.
Most landlords aren’t rich
Yet, Generation Rent blithely asserts that because many landlords are mortgage-free (most are not), all of us can foot this bill without blinking.
Tell that to the landlords scraping by on slim margins, juggling maintenance, taxes and selective licensing and now we face the looming threat of ‘death by a thousand clipboard checks’.
The government’s new Reduced Data Standard Assessment Procedure (RdSAP) for EPC assessments has only made matters worse.
Energy assessors will now collect more detailed data, down to the type and condition of windows and the efficiency of heating systems based on model numbers.
While the government claims this will provide a ‘clearer picture’ of a property’s energy efficiency, experts warn it could lead to many homes dropping an EPC band.
Now, for those who don’t quite understand the significance of that, a property that barely scraped a C rating could now be downgraded to a D, rendering it unlettable under the new rules unless landlords cough up for upgrades.
One retrofit company says that changes in how electric heating systems are scored could penalise properties with heat pumps, perversely discouraging green investments.
We are facing an unpalatable issue – landlords who have spent their way to scrape to a C rating from D might well see the property being downgraded back to D.
There’s also the potential of landlords who have invested in heat pumps seeing the EPC rating being downgraded because of the pump’s electric running costs.
Net Zero madness
This isn’t Net Zero progress – it’s a bureaucratic nightmare that punishes landlords for trying to comply.
I’m fully on board now with those landlords who have been telling us to ignore the government’s urgings in recent years and wait until the scoring system is settled.
I can’t even bring myself to discuss the government’s Warm Homes Plan, with its £13.2 billion funding, is touted as a lifeline, but while grants are available, they have strict eligibility limited to tenants on low incomes.
Even then, the maximum investment cap for exemptions is £15,000 – hardly enough for older properties requiring extensive retrofitting.
Leading Labour lights insist that these upgrades won’t lead to rent rises but Labour’s own Justice Minister, Sarah Sackman, let the cat out of the bag when she confirmed that landlords can legally factor EPC costs into ‘higher market rents’.
The Conservatives estimate this could mean rent increases of up to £4,000 a year, a burden tenants can ill afford in a cost-of-living crisis.
The EPC debacle will inevitably see good, blameless tenants being evicted because landlords don’t have tens of thousands of pounds lying around to carry out the work.
The government wants to decarbonise homes – only for the PRS – and yet the EPC system is widely criticised as unfit for purpose.
The Energy Security and Net Zero Committee says that EPCs are ‘devalued’ by landlords and tenants alike, with many ignoring ratings altogether.
Proposals to require new EPCs for every tenancy, even for existing tenants, add yet another layer of cost and complexity. For HMOs, where tenant turnover can be as frequent as every nine months, this could mean a new EPC every time a single room is relet – a logistical and financial disaster.
Landlords aren’t anti-environment. Many are proactively upgrading properties, but the system offers little incentive.
Tory MPs have urged tax breaks to offset costs, arguing that energy-efficient homes could reduce tenants’ bills and reliance on foreign fuel. Yet, the government seems more interested in punitive regulations than practical support.
Being a landlord today
The real-world ignorance of what it takes to be a landlord today is staggering.
Between rising EPC costs, the Renters’ Rights Bill, and the potential abolition of Section 21, 73% of landlords report plummeting confidence.
It’s time to stop painting landlords as cash-rich villains.
We’re navigating a minefield of regulations, rising costs and unrealistic expectations.
If the government wants a greener PRS, it needs to offer real support – tax incentives, streamlined grants and a fairer EPC system – rather than piling on more burdens.
Otherwise, the only thing ‘net zero’ will describe is the number of rental properties left on the market.
Until next time,
The Landlord Crusader
Tags:
energy efficiency, EPC upgrades, housing crisis, landlord costs, Landlords, Net Zero, Private Rented Sector, PRS, renters rights bill, The Landlord Crusader, Warm Homes Plan
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Member Since February 2020 - Comments: 360
10:11 AM, 20th June 2025, About 10 months ago
“Generation Rent blithely asserts that because many landlords are mortgage-free (most are not), all of us can foot this bill without blinking.”
The question isn’t whether landlords can afford it.
We are not all here to be whittled down to 0 savings in a race to the bottom.
The question is should the landlord foot the bill.
If society wants these standards, society should pay. The proposals are an erosion of property rights, reminding us that none of our property is safe in a socialist system.
They will just keep taking until there is no more of other peoples money to take.
The poor are always worse off in socialist countries than the poor of freer countries that respect property rights. So, no we should not be imposing these costs on landlords, if the government doesn’t want to pay these costs, its because they are not worth doing.
Member Since June 2013 - Comments: 3246 - Articles: 81
10:21 AM, 20th June 2025, About 10 months ago
I’m selling all mine. I’ve considered myself a good Landlord charging below normal rent.
Doing repairs quick.
If tenant good, which most have been, I do what they ask.
Although last 5-8 years or so, I’ve been turning into a Rogue Landlord.
When Licensing comes out & says Mick u got to pay £900, I say what for, I’ve got new boiler & kitchen.
They say cause that Landlord up the road done a bad job & we need your money to go after him.
I then start to take it out the tenant & give her rent increase. I also stop doing non emergency repairs/maintenance, when the tenants rent is below what’s required nowadays.
We burdened by UC when they ask for rent proof every year, sometimes I’ll get 3 requests on a Friday at 3pm.
Whereas working people don’t need this & just show proof out bank to whoever requires it, UC even the TOP area DWP Partnersh!t Oops Partnership managers say
Mick, we need up to date tenancy to show proof of rent.
Aaah Fxxkoff, there is no such thing as up to date tenancy, u not gonna’ get current rent off 10 year old tenancy, STOP ASKING. Why can’t they just show u out bank?
Nottingham UC service centre, gets 90% of my tenants claims wrong that have lived there 10 20 years when they ask for tenancy for rent proof. And then I have a fight with constant typing messages out to help them on their journal.
Section 24, the list goes on, so much so, I’m out of here. When people like me pack up, the lower earnings & Benefit tenants, it’s really gonna’ hurt them.
Keep spreading these words please.
WhyTenantsCan’tGetHouses
A background to why you tenants are paying extortionate rents and can’t get anywhere unless you earning a cracking wage-Blame the Govt and Councils you vote for because you like it when they give more regs & rules to the Landlord-Guess who pays for this? You do.
I’m the biggest private provider to Benefit tenants in Nottingham over 27 years and not once has the Govt and Council come to ask me What they can do for me, so I and my colleagues will take the people we used to take. I will add to this list as I remember more.
They wanted Pet deposits banned.
Cause we’d want £100 more in case dog did damage.
End of tenancy, dog did no damage, tenant got all deposit back.
2019 you banned higher pet deposits cause some tenants didn’t like it when dog did damage & didn’t get their deposit back.
We stopped taking pets.
2024 MP stood up in Parliament and called for Pet deposits to be reinstated cause tenants with pets couldn’t get accommodation.
You couldn’t make this up.
Description here https://docs.google.com/document/d/1u54ouYTdNr7WaCPYW18Q_tZdlJr8-VwSUJpE0IcPf5k/edit?usp=drivesdk
They don’t want Landlords helping tenants with Benefits and they bought in Universal Credit which has zero communication with Landlord- We now don’t take Benefit tenants.
They bought in Selective Licensing on good Landlords with good houses. We put the rents up to cover it and now don’t take risky tenants.
Landlord can get fined £30,000 if tenant takes battery out smoke alarm and Landlord CAN’T prove that tenant did it.
Landlord can get fined £30,000 if renting 1 bed flat to single person and he/she moves his/her partner in unbeknown to the Landlord if the Selective License only has license for one occupier.
They started fining Landlords £5000 if they didn’t check tenants passport properly on Right to Rent checks-Landlords stopped taking anyone that had the slightest chance of being illegal immigrant. Innocent UK citizens suffered.
2015, they bought in that if Landlord CANNOT PROVE he/she has gave tenant boiler certificate, you can never get your property back. Even if had a new boiler 5 years later, Judge says Not bothered, u not having your house back. This helped the current bad tenant, hurts the next 100,000 tenants waiting for a home. A purely Anti Landlord measure to stop Landlord getting rid bad tenant or having his house back.
Oct 2024 Unison now wants a rent freeze. Ooh are we a charity are we? What other individual who sells or provides something is told YOU CANNOT charge a price u wish?
Oct 2024 the Renter Rights Bill is going to make it law, u can’t do rent increase unless use Section 13. Now for years, I’ve agreed informally with tenant ‘Ok £25 a month, u still £200pm now below anyone else.’ Job done.
Now, I’m totally full up with paperwork and rules and regs. I have no more time. Section 13 some more say only a few mins. It’s still 30 mins by time printed, filled in, signed, scanned, sent. Each one when u have lots of houses on top of Selective Licensing INSISTING we inspect each house every 4 months (two weeks solid just on inspections every months) is taking me over the edge. My existing tenants are going to have to go with Letting Agent who charge £50 for a Section 13. That’s £4pm extra on the rent. Along with the extra £80pm Letting Agent fee which gets rid of cheap rent was charity.
Sep 2024 Ed Miliband MP wants all houses to EPC C which will cost Landlords £5000 and increase tenants cheap rents. As soon he announced this, he made more tenants homeless. Few words on that here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1eI7z29SNRCDLLwX6_0QQChrwTxZ4jGZw4UNybVYfD1s/edit?usp=drivesdk
Section 24 Tax bought in by George Osborne of the Tories who said it will only affect 1 in 5 Landlords-That’s over 2 million tenants put at risk of homeless. Landlords with tenants of 25 years are now being made homeless on this one action alone.
Oct 2024 I’ve heard there’s a part of the RRB that says we must give tenants our home address on paperwork.
Details of that here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1v7aETrvz0j6CdS7LZwYukthZAbhNxLWRKR8qShi6Gok/edit?usp=drivesdk
Every anti Landlord measure they bring in to they think will help the tenant has hurt the tenants massively.
Every time the MP’s talk an anti landlord measure, they’ve made more homeless and increased rents.
There is loads mores
Member Since June 2013 - Comments: 3246 - Articles: 81
10:23 AM, 20th June 2025, About 10 months ago
And here’s me EPC video to Ed Miliband when he started to wreck tenants lives again around Feb time, for those that haven’t seen it.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/QxUPeHUSFRLyLn9p6
Member Since September 2018 - Comments: 3515 - Articles: 5
10:44 AM, 20th June 2025, About 10 months ago
surely the only LL’s that are now ‘swimming in wealth’ or sitting on cash are the EX LL’s who have sold out?
This could mean physically cashed out and quid’s in – or those have left and reinvested elsewhere (creating more wealth/money by diversifying).
By default the only ones who are left are probably not going to be cash rich or swimming in wealth so it can be easily spend on such demands.
Member Since September 2018 - Comments: 3515 - Articles: 5
10:57 AM, 20th June 2025, About 10 months ago
At the end of the day the T has to agree to ANY work to carry out ANY upgrades. As the Sarah Sackman said herself on14 May 2025
A market rent decision in the First-tier Tribunal is a judicial decision and expenditure on the upgrading of an Energy Performance Certificate to a higher level of energy efficiency is a material consideration which may result, in certain circumstances, in a higher market rent being determined by the First-tier Tribunal.
So, the proposal for an upgrade is presented to the sitting T and the result means an increase of the rent by £XXX. How many are likely to agree to the works?
If the work is proposed to be done on an empty property and the cost is X then the rent thereafter may be above market rate and so basically ‘unrentable’. Why would a LL bother? In this case, don’t do the work at all, sell to a FTB, Air BNB/holiday, or a commercial let beckons. Property becomes removed from the PRS and so another individual rental lost..
This blind race to a false destination that is NZ will cause more issues that it can ever (misguidedly) hope to even ‘resolve’.
Member Since June 2013 - Comments: 11
10:59 AM, 20th June 2025, About 10 months ago
As Margaret Thatcher said, “Eventually, you run out of other people’s money”.
Landlords should not be footing the bill for this Governments Socialist ideology.
Member Since July 2013 - Comments: 754
11:21 AM, 20th June 2025, About 10 months ago
I think many LLs, including myself, would be more amenable to doing EPC upgrades if there were demonstrably robust and consistently applied measurement metrics to achieve either meaningful energy/cost savings or net zero.
At present we have neither, so little wonder that we sit on our hands waiting for clarity and consistency. Govt can set all the deadlines it likes but until we have the above, it’s not going to happen, other than in case of necessity, such as a boiler failure.
Member Since June 2013 - Comments: 3246 - Articles: 81
11:28 AM, 20th June 2025, About 10 months ago
Reply to the comment left by Freda Blogs at 20/06/2025 – 11:21
That’s it constant. And it’s not constant if they changing the methods.
We can give the tenants gold taps if Govt wants, but it’s gonna’ cost.
My tenants hate these bafoon’s & changes, they sick of people coming in their home & saying need internal wall insulation & then u got to buy new smaller settee.
Member Since December 2015 - Comments: 292
12:01 PM, 20th June 2025, About 10 months ago
Mick, you really need to get your own stand up comedy show. No disrespect nor personal comparison at all intended. If Kaleb can do it from Clarkson Farm then you can from Robert’s Renters?? Or ‘landlord’s are not us’-
No messing – just give it straight.
The bonus- make a living telling the government, shelter and the other non in touch with the real world a few home truths.
Be less stressful than the c..p we get at the moment.
Do for farming what Clarkson done for farmers.even do it as Clarkson if Amazon would fund it?
I may even pay to watch it. 😂 🤣
Member Since June 2013 - Comments: 3246 - Articles: 81
1:07 PM, 20th June 2025, About 10 months ago
Reply to the comment left by dismayed landlord at 20/06/2025 – 12:01
Yes I have no time for anything extra at moment as selling all me houses, and my work life at moment would look pretty boring, although did have these years ago which some find shocking:
https://youtu.be/i_HKaqYlHi4 Tenants from Hell Bulwell.
https://youtu.be/OzqVVRlZzE8 Tenants from Hell Bestwood Park
https://youtu.be/QcENHbgfMR4 Tenants from Hell Top Valley Nov 2010
https://youtu.be/_UvO8dmxGQQ Tenants from Hell May 12th 2010.
https://youtu.be/DzRIyfLHRn0 Tenants from Hell May 10th 2010.
The rest are on http://www.youtube.com/mickroberts2006
I han’t done any for years.