Government consultation to increase minimum EPC rating to band C for PRS

Reply to the comment left by Jan Martin at 03/10/2020 - 22:44
No, I am reading the current guidance. Look it up for yourself, I have given the website link in my previous post which was in response to someone who is proposing to spend £18,000 on improvement work now.
The increase to a cap of £10,000 is one element of the government's "preferred policy" proposal which is now out to consultation and is not intended to take effect until 2025 for new tenancies and 2028 for all tenancies.
The consultation is the opportunity for anyone affected by the proposed changes to make their views known to government so it is important that we all respond individually to it.
I anticipate that NRLA will be making their own submission, probably after carrying out a survey of their members to establish what they think about it.

Reply to the comment left by Seething Landlord at 04/10/2020 - 00:44
I had my quotes in , both are mid terraced houses, one has side extension so will require slightly less insulation as the extension is a cavity filled with insulation pads build in 1992, so cost at £120 per square meter, so my house would cost me £9000, and the one I rent out will cost £10,500, Government grant capped at max £5000, or 2/3 of the cost, which means for my house I will be paying £4000 from my pocket whilst gov chips in 5k, I still think it is way too much, companies are cashing on these schemes with highly inflated prices. If I engage a private builder and get him to do the job, it would cost half that., so basically you are paying 100% to get the job done and companies approved to do the job are picking up huge profits , this grant makes you think you are getting a good deal but you are going to make these companies richer, they cant wait to start the job, but I am not rushing in.

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Reply to the comment left by Mike at 04/10/2020 - 03:47
Mike, the company I got my quote from wanted £160 per sq m, so it looks like the government's green deal is just a deal for these companies, not the end user.

Reply to the comment left by Jessie Jones at 04/10/2020 - 15:27
Jessie, are you and Mike debating the obligation to meet the minimum energy efficiency standards or the cost of using funding from the green homes initiative for some other purpose?
I don't really understand what your comments have to do with the government proposal to increase the MEES to EPC C or with the current obligation to meet EPC E but if they are connected perhaps you could explain.

yes connected to improving the EPC rating where you have already taken many steps but are still stuck at a lower rating and we know that in a few years the government will tighten rules and we will all need to jump up one more step to B..
Heat loss through walls and windows and floors is major heating expenditure and detrimental to the environment even when you are using a condensing boiler, grants are also being offered to car owners to go all electric, yes you need to get ready to face the challenges of future, that is why grants are being offered to improve on energy efficiencies and savings on the import of huge gas bill where we have to import our heating fuel. the less we import the better for us all. Hence the EPC rating system came in first forcing landlords then eventually all homeowners will be required to follow suit, all these small changes are going to help our planets climate issues. The effects of EPC is wider than just landlords being forced to comply with, but here we were looking into how we can use government grants to improve further ratings from D to C, I have loft insulation , a condensing boiler, loft insulation, double glazing, LED light bulbs, low energy fridge, time to now start looking into external wall insulation as it is huge cost to afford so government grants should help those trying to further improve on heating bills and prevent loss of heat, floors will be next soon I guess.

Very sorry if you thought there is no connection, but we both see a connection, far ahead into the future.

Further more (seething Landlord) I have been personally looking at external wall insulation as my heating bills are insane, I pay around £1200 to heat my house per year, If I was not 67 I would also contemplate having my own solar panel power station on my roof, Never mind the EPC rating but we all ought to save use of energy where we can, just helps the planet and safeguards our children's future, so yes overall you need not be worried if your rented property already meets C rating.

Another thing seething landlord, just checked ratings of all my properties, they are all in band D, all of them have loft insulation to 270mm thickness, double glazing, Low energy bulbs, condensing boilers, so tell me if Government forced us to go to band C, how else would you achieve that, you have a choice here, solar panels, or external wall insulation, or floor insulation, take your pick., to help you Governments have made grants to help everyone, 5K for those who are not on any benefits and full 10K those who are on it, we bunch are in the wrong band as Landlords!

Reply to the comment left by Mike at 04/10/2020 - 20:43Thanks Mike for your explanation. I applaud your attitude to reducing your carbon footprint (and heating bills!) when most of us on this forum are only looking at the effect on the profitability of our rental businesses.
In our small portfolio we have just one property that is EPC D rated. The only recommendation that would raise it to C or better was solar panels, although I suspect that installing gas central heating to replace the storage heaters would achieve a similar improvement. Neither option would stand up to cost/benefit scrutiny. The other properties are rated C or B.so of no immediate concern.
With hindsight we should have installed solar panels on all suitable properties before the Feed In tariffs were withdrawn but that opportunity is long gone.
In focussing on the proposal to increase the minimum rating to EPC C I think we have overlooked what is perhaps the more worrying suggestion in the consultation that the EIR (Environmental Impact Rating) will be incorporated in the regulations at some point with an obligation to raise that to a minimum rating of C, which will probably be rather more difficult and if we act too soon we may well find that they move the goalposts when they achieve their objective of electricity becoming more environmentally friendly than gas.

Not only the landlords , but now many motorist are becoming the target of Ultra Low emissions zones, which are spreading like corona virus, started with just within the Central London congestion zone, where to drive your car you have to now pay £15.00 per day , and this now operates 7 days a week 364 days a year with a holiday just for Christmas.
On top of this motorist already pay varying amounts of road tax fund based on your cars emission standards and engine size, if that was not enough then here comes another shocker:
Where I live, my local council now wants to charge us a lot more to get Resident's parking permits, so these are being based on your cars engine size irrespective of its emissions, the only exemption is if you own an electric car or a hybrid,

It does not stop here, as all my cars are pre 2005, yes I do not like to waste my money on new cars, so now this London mayor wants to extend this Ultra Low Emissions Zone to outer London boroughs, so each time I use my old cars I will have to pay £12.50 low emissions charge, and worst thing about it is if I went out at 11pm to see a friend, and returned at 1 am , I will have to pay for two days as the charging clock runs from midnight to midnight, hence £25 just to see a friend, if anyone selling a note printing press ntact me 😂
So this really is a bad news for my tenants, because for me to fork out this extra charge which in my particular case will be an additional £640 per year as there are two cars in my household, so sadly as the money does not grow on trees nor do I own a note printing press, so my tenants will have to pay for it, as majority of my income comes from rent.
yes we now live in a very sad old world, full of sad people. Gone are the 60s and 70s and 80s the lovely days when you could drive anywhere without fearing camera penalties arriving in your post, park in most places for free, now you have residents parking schemes, in some places you cannot even park to shop as side streets are for residents only, no pay and display parking. I am glad I am 67, I won't have to endure this onslaught on landlords and motorist for too long .