Profile incomplete
9:17 AM, 8th April 2024, About 3 weeks ago 12
Text Size
Hi, just read a new article on the NRLA website. This one seems to come out of the blue to me. Never heard of it until now. Is anyone else none the wiser? Not heard about any consultation or anything yet this looks a done deal!
Thoughts everyone?
EPCs are changing: what does this mean for you?
The new Home Energy Model is set to replace the Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) next year.
In this article first published in NRLA magazine Property, James Kent, the NRLA’s chief innovation officer and founder of property compliance platform Safe2, explains what this means.
New changes to the way the energy efficiency of homes is calculated could see costs skyrocket for landlords. Homes will need to undergo a series of extra checks as part of the new system, with the additional time it will take assessors to carry out the work expected to be reflected in higher bills.
Costs and the time taken to carry out an inspection vary depending on the size and type of building, but bills are typically around £65 for an average three-bedroom property, with the inspection taking around 30–40 minutes to complete.
Currently, homes are rated using something called a Standard Assessment Procedure (SAP), which sees properties given a points score that translates as an EPC rating ranked from A (extremely energy efficient) to G (extremely inefficient). The replacement Home Energy Model will use a new Future Homes Standard assessment, which will see assessors:
Measure all windows at the property, rather than relying on assumptions based on age
Carry out additional assessment of rooms in the roof
Introduce a new age band for properties built from 2023 onwards
Take into account the use of power diverters and battery storage, used in conjunction with solar panel
Recommend the use of heat pumps more frequently.
Why are the changes being made?
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak announced earlier this year that he was abandoning plans to introduce a minimum
EPC rating of C in all rental properties by 2028; however, net zero ambitions remain, with a Government target date of 2050.
Energy performance is, at present, based on the efficiency of heating a building using gas, as this has been the cheapest and the
most effective form of heating.
Consequently, when landlords have made improvements to their properties by moving them to electrical heating
systems via a heat pump, they have seen their EPC score fall.
As a result, ministers want to change the framework by which energy efficiency is calculated to focus instead on carbon emissions, with the new, more in-depth assessments also expected to give a more accurate picture of energy efficiency.
The assessments will also provide information as to what improvement work is possible given the age and type of
property in question.
What does this mean for existing EPCs?
The Government is currently consulting on the Home Energy Model, although assessors have confirmed they are already training in the new system.
Under proposals outlined in the consultation document, the new system would be introduced in April next year; however, it has yet to say what will happen to existing EPCs, which currently have a 10-year lifespan.
It is possible that they could be allowed to remain in place until the next assessment is
due, although this has yet to be confirmed.
What does the NRLA think?
The NRLA backs the overall principles of plans to decarbonise heating and is pleased a new system, less reliant on assumptions, is likely to be more accurate.
However, it does have concerns about the increased time it will take to carry out inspections, and the knock-on impact on landlords’ costs – at a time when landlords are under more financial pressure than ever.
IAN FLINT
11:55 AM, 8th April 2024, About 3 weeks ago
This is for new build to replace SAP, for the on completion EPC. This is office based and done from plans.
This a different and not existing property EPC which is RDSAP and concerns us the most.
Reluctant Landlord
13:26 PM, 8th April 2024, About 3 weeks ago
Reply to the comment left by IAN FLINT at 08/04/2024 - 11:55
aahhhh thanks for the clarification
Cider Drinker
13:30 PM, 8th April 2024, About 3 weeks ago
I’m sure tighter EPC rules will be introduced in due course. I’m equally sure that we still won’t have sufficient tradesmen nor sufficient materials to implement the improvements.
I’ve made two thirds of mine EPC Rating C. The remainder will be done when the tenants leave and I decide to sell.
Judith Wordsworth
14:51 PM, 8th April 2024, About 3 weeks ago
I remember this being discussed last year and a few assessors said they would be undergoing additional training this year.
Currently an EPC is only required when advertising for rent or sale. It can expire during a tenancy and need not be renewed after expiry until the property is advertised for rent or sale.
Many properties won’t be able to reach minimum rental requirements even if monies are thrown at them. There will have to still be exemptions, unless these properties are knocked down.
Cider Drinker
15:45 PM, 8th April 2024, About 3 weeks ago
As we head towards greener energy, there should be less of a drive to make our homes greener.
GlanACC
17:02 PM, 8th April 2024, About 3 weeks ago
From what I gather the EPC rating of F to A still stands BUT its the 'background' database of energy values that is changing, so in theory should make electric housing look more efficient. ... but what do I know, this seems to have been quietly introduced.
Reluctant Landlord
17:43 PM, 8th April 2024, About 3 weeks ago
Reply to the comment left by GlanACC at 08/04/2024 - 17:02my worry is that that any new EPC after April next year that uses this new 'behind the scenes calculation', may mean that current EPC rating drops to the point it is the zone where mostly likely further bans to let are going to apply if it doesn't meet the minimum (C? D?).
So I get another one done to be safe for 10 years in say at the end of the year or wait until April 2025?
Another bloody thing to second guess.
GlanACC
18:05 PM, 8th April 2024, About 3 weeks ago
Reply to the comment left by Reluctant Landlord at 08/04/2024 - 17:43
Yup, I would expect current EPCs to remain current until they need to be renewed (or is that too logical) - otherwise half a million EPCs would need to be done in a few weeks. I would also hope that an EPC is ONLY required when a new tenant is found or selling the property, in this case if the tenant hasn't changed then no need to get a new EPC (this could be the bit that changes)
Joey Barton
19:02 PM, 8th April 2024, About 3 weeks ago
What's really maddening about EPCs are all the recommendations for parts of the structure that aren't even legally demised to you as a leaseholder. The Assessors should not be allowed to recommend that you make changes to parts of the structure that you don't own or even have maintenance obligations for (or they should be for noting only and not contribute to a score). If you're a top-floor flat for example, anything relating to a roof owned by a Freeholder should be not applicable, the same as for the flats on the lower floors.
SimonP
23:50 PM, 8th April 2024, About 3 weeks ago
Reply to the comment left by Judith Wordsworth at 08/04/2024 - 14:51
If EPCs have to be shown when advertising For Sale or For Rent, then why is it that RightMove have, in the main, stopped showing EPCs even when they are in place.
Where there should be an EPC there is now "Energy performance certificate - not provided", which is utter BS. I know that for a fact, from personal experience.
Why is RM doing this? For some obscure and irrational reason, many adverts do not provide a complete address of the property for sale/rent and the EPC helps fill in that missing information (via the gov - Find an EPC).
Now, when looking for property to buy, I am skipping those without addresses and EPCs: I can't be bothered as there are hundreds of ads to get through. It's very similar to viewing CVs for jobs, so I am informed, either provide enough information that will take the viewer past 10-15 seconds or it lands in the WPB (waste paper basket). What a waste of money by the sellers. I wonder if they realise that is happening?