Aug 1, 2014
Landlords hit by changing energy performance legislation
Letting out old, draughty rooms and buildings to tenants could soon be a thing of the past, once the government’s change to energy efficiency legislation is put into place.
This new legislation will give tenants the right to request an energy efficiency survey on a property. Should the resulting Energy Performance Certificate be returned, indicating that the property’s efficiency is classed as Band E or below, then the property will not be allowed to be let, as from 2016.
There is a silver lining, however. Landlords who can prove that although they have tried to improve their property’s energy efficiency but have been unable to do so, leaving their property rated as Band E or below; will be able to let out their property once more as from 2018.
It is thought that a Band C home is currently faced with fuel bills of around £1000 less than a Band F or G home. In addition, the government is planning to extend the Energy Company Obligation(ECO) agreement to March 2017. This could see up to 100,000 properties benefitting from sold wall insulation to cut down on the amount of heat wastage.
Band C, D and E homes are expected to raise their game, with deadlines for movement up the scale to be in place by 2030 for Band C, 2025 for Band D and 2020 for Band E.
Recent figures from DECC have revealed that one in ten privately rented homes have the lowest energy efficiency , with 20 percent of those people officially classed as living within “fuel poverty”.
Remember – as from 2016, an Energy Performance Certificate must be provided for each landlord’s property that you rent or manage, and this EPC must be rated above Band E before it can be marketed as available for viewing by prospective tenants.