Energy Performance certificates (EPC) are vitally important when it comes to either selling and/or renting a property. They are part of the legally prescribed documents that must be supplied to a buyer or tenant before a sale or rental agreement can go through. In the following article, we shall take a look a EPC ratings, what affects them and improves them and why you should be looking to improve them now with new regulations coming into place for landlords.
What are Energy Performance Certificates?
Much like the multi-coloured sticker on new appliances, Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs) tell you how energy efficient a building is and give it a rating from A (very efficient) to G (inefficient). They’ll tell you how costly it will be to heat and light your property, and what its carbon dioxide emissions are likely to be. An EPC also includes information on what the energy efficiency rating could be if you made the recommended improvements and highlights cost effective ways to achieve a better rating. Even if you rent your home, you could still implement some improvements noted on the EPC, such as switching to more energy efficient light bulbs. EPCs are valid for 10 years from the date of issue.
What are the EPC rating bands?
EPC’s are rated from A to G on the following scoring system:
- EPC rating A = 92-100 SAP points (most efficient)
- EPC rating B = 81-91 SAP points.
- EPC rating C = 69-80 SAP points.
- EPC rating D = 55-68 SAP points.
- EPC rating E = 39-54 SAP points.
- EPC rating F = 21-38 SAP points.
- EPC rating G = 1-20 SAP points (least efficient)
What do the new EPC regulations state?
The Government plans to enforce:
1. New tenancies must have an EPC rating of C by December 2025.
2. All rented properties must have an EPC rating of C by December 2028.
Currently, rental properties must achieve an EPC rating of E or above in order to be fit for rent. These plans are part of the Minimum Energy Performance of Buildings Bill, which parliament have been debating over the past year or two . It’s all to do with the Government’s commitment to reach net zero by 2050. A commitment that stems from COP26 in Glasgow. The summit that highlighted the need for immediate global action to save our warming planet.
What affects an EPC and improvements to help?
Lighting: Lighting is one of the features that contributes towards a home’s EPC rating. Energy-efficient light bulbs, such as LEDs (light emitting diodes), last longer and generate less heat, so they reduce a household’s energy consumption.
Windows: The windows contribute to the insulation of the property and should be as thermally efficient as possible. Single glazed and wooden windows will do very little when try to keep heat in. Good quality double or triple glazed windows will add between 5-10 points on an EPC.
Heating: The boiler in the property has the single and biggest impact on an EPC rating and can change it up 40 points with a new, more efficient boiler along with smart thermostats and smart radiator thermostats.
Insulation: Insulation is another main factor with the points system and a well-insulated property can shift the EPC rating by 4-20 points compared to a less insulated one. Assessors look at wall cavity and loft insulation which will reduce the heat loss. The insulation should be 100mm between joints in the walls and a minimum of 270mm in the loft to achieve top points.
Plan ahead
Although there is still uncertainty as to what the final rules will be, or when the change will happen for certain, the fact remains that sooner or later the standards will need to be improved.
Landlords might as well “bite the bullet” sooner rather than later and plan to make impoundments when opportunities arise. One such opportunity would be when tenancies come to an end and before a new one begins.
Start off by looking at the recommendations in the current EPC document. This should give a guide, though it is perhaps more beneficial to get some builders’ estimates from people who know what they are doing when it comes to energy efficiency improvements.