Landlords are bracing for pricier energy performance certificate (EPC) checks and stricter rules under Ed Miliband’s Net Zero drive, with fears that tougher standards could make thousands of homes impossible to rent. The Telegraph has the details:
Under reforms, energy assessors will be expected to use a new data collection system, raising the price of certificates to up to £250 each.
The more stringent criteria could also mean that properties could drop an EPC band, experts said, making them impossible to let under rules set out by Ed Miliband, the Energy Secretary.
Under the new methodology, assessors will be required to inspect the size, frame type and glazing of every window in the house more thoroughly, as well as recording any extractor fans and blocked chimneys.
Chris Norris, of the National Residential Landlords Association (NRLA) property body, warned that the price of an EPC certificate, which typically costs between £50 and £120, could rise by £20 this summer as a result of the changes. …
However, Sean Horton, of mortgage adviser Respect Mortgages, said the more intensive assessments could increase the price of certificates “to £150-£250 easily”.
He added: “The window measurements alone are crackers. Instead of just noting ‘typical double glazing’, assessors now need to measure each window individually, record orientations, frame types, glazing gaps, ages, draught proofing – the lot.
“That’s going to make each assessment much longer, with the cost passed on to the landlord.”
From 2030, all rental homes must have an EPC score of at least C, while landlords accepting new tenants will be expected to achieve the required standard by 2028. …
Labour is due to replace the beleaguered EPC system entirely with the much-anticipated Home Energy Model, following years of consultation.
Among other changes, the reforms are expected to favour homes with the “capacity to integrate with smart technology”, which some fear will penalise homeowners who refuse a smart meter. …
Kundan Bhaduri, of the Kushman Group real estate firm, said: “For portfolio landlords, this is death by a thousand clipboard checks.
“Costs will rise sharply, and worse still, homes that previously scraped a C rating could now drop to a D, dragging us into yet another regulatory penalty zone. And this is just the warm-up act before the even more chaotic Home Energy Model arrives.”
Worth reading in full.
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Producing these certificates seems like profoundly unproductive work to me
I understand it can take a whole week to learn how to do it.
More unproductive work for the people that train them, enforce the rules, make up new ones…
Oh Lord! How will they cope under such an egregious workload? The stress, the stress!
It’s a grifting scheme.
Lots of money to be made by officials and “experts” who now wield power over homeowners looking to rent. You pay them their (climate) protection money or you don’t get to rent your property. Up to you…
We fell into being private landlords for a while, got out when we saw the direction things were heading in.
What this is really about is forcing small private Landlords out of the market, those with say less than half a dozen properties. The expectation is that these people will say “enough” and sell up. And who will pile in? The likes of the big investment houses via their proxies. Indirectly it will be the Blackrocks of the world taking over the rental market and once this happens they will choose how the market operates not the thieving politicians, who will have been bought anyway.
True—-It is about the elites enriching themselves at the expense of the rest of us, all under the guise of saving the planet.
Surely it should be tenants to face higher bills as any increases in costs by the landlord will lead to increased rent?
No, no. You see, landlords are all rich so they don’t have to and won’t pass on costs to their customers.
And how did they get to be so rich?
Yeah! Exploiting the masses! The bastards!
Oh. Wait…
I recall some dickhead in the Tory Party – yes, I know, doesn’t narrow it down much – mewled that the increase of the insurance tax did not have to be added to the premium. Which was just further evidence that Tories had very few with experience in business and it has only got worse.
Net Zero Kills Rental Market
Net Zero kills everything you have. It removes your prosperity that took 300 years to attain. The eco socialists think we all have too much, we consume too much and we should get by with less of EVERYTHING
Someone earlier provided a link to this Telegraph article: The 32-year-old nuclear scientist busting the ‘Net Zero myth’
I was particularly interested in this little section.
‘It’s actually possible‘ he says. But as the old joke about the tourist in Ireland asking for directions goes: ‘Well, I wouldn’t start from here’. A zero-carbon grid by 2030? Not a chance. We can’t build nuke stations (let alone including planning) in 5 years.
Now I’m not a nuclear scientist so perhaps I’m being dim, but why would you want a grid consisting 70% ‘always on’ nuclear, and 30% unreliable renewables? Will 30% of freezers just switch off when the wind isn’t blowing?
No – a fleet of hundreds of gas powered turbines will pickup the 30% when it’s not blowy / the sun isn’t shining, as per now
Oh that’s ok, Labour will just build new houses and import more immigrants, in the Commie mind that will solve it!
I love how this page selects stories to get your back up complete with hideous photographs. This is the most tortuous drawn out agenda that they have ever come up with. Like in the Ancient Mariner: “The man hath penance done. And penance more will do.”. It is so hideous when you look at its advocates. That’s the torture. You can’t tear them limb from limb but they can rip you to pieces with their thousand snidey cuts. Taste the exquisite torure.
What are you doing with this poorer and poorer malarkey? What is this obsession of the British masses with inflicting austerity and seemingly indefinitely? Is it some sort of post colonial guilt trip? It is very strange because research has shown that the greatest advocates for austerity are those with the lowest incomes like they can’t get enough of the taste of the whip. It is some nifty black magic.
I’m a landlord in Ireland and im giving up on it, apt is soon to be on sale.
If Trump does what he’s threatening to do and lower US corporation tax to the Irish equivalent of 12.5% then Apple, Microsoft et al are going to flee Ireland like rats from a sinking ship and little old Ireland is back to selling potatoes 🥔 instead of riding high with the Brussels elite, I’m cashing in while values are high!
Get your money out quickly you are crazy if you hang around. If you want a schema of where to go then follow this axiom – get out of the Brittanic countries, get out of Europe, and hopefully get out of the northern hemisphere. I don’t say this lightly and it is up to you but if you have the means then go deep into the southern hemisphere as quickly as possible.
Thankfully I sold my house – which was rented out, last year.
In my opinion the EPC ratings were a farce as it did not take into account how warm people like their house. Me – I prefer about 24C, my brother was fine at 17C – makes a helluva difference to the EPC rating.
Why is that we in the UK must always pretend to save the planet harder and faster than all other countries. Why is our average energy bills 3 times higher than most other countries, and why does all of this phony planet saving have to get done at breakneck speed like there was no tomorrow? —-because we are governed by UN and WEF arse lickers like Miliband. But he is not alone. They are all in on this eco socialist scam that deliberately sets about lowering the living standards of UK citizens because we have according to the UN/WEF consumed to much and we are to make do with less of EVERYTHING. Tragically our parasite politicians are all fully onboard with this fraud.
What happens if the landlord and tenant ignore all of this?
Good question – one of the (few) things I admire about the French, is their willingness to totally ignore rules and regulations when it suits them, especially the most stupid ones… if everyone did so, they’d be scrapped in no time
How will they do this from home?
We have five houses in East London which are currently let to families with children. In all but one case, the current tenants have been with us since we first started renting the properties. Between them they have 11 children. Five of those children were born since the families became our tenants. They feel secure and comfortable enough in our houses to build families and surely that is a good thing. Now it has got to the point where renting simply isn’t a viable option for us or anyone. We have put the first house on the market this week. Most private landlords in the area have got out of the game well before us or are getting out now Estate agents tell us that over 70% of houses for sale in the area are private landlords getting rid of their properties. You might have little sympathy. After all, if lots of people are selling, houses will become cheaper, new families will come in and occupy them. But this is an area where people can’t afford or don’t want to take on home ownership. For three of our families, their religion prevents them from borrowing with interest, even if they could afford to. They all actually prefer to rent. But no one cares about that or takes any trouble to understand it. What kind of country is this?
You seem to be the sort of landlord that tenants want to have. You care about them as people, rather than just seeing them as a resource and an income generator. The market will be poorer without you operating in it. But you’ve provided one more illustration of how the Net Zero dogma doesn’t value people. In fact, it sees us as the problem.
Better to have no home at all than to rent one with a substandard energy certificate!
Can you stop using photos of Ed Miliband looking like a dork. It’s causing significant stress and I may end up with PTSD.
I don’t think any other photos exist do they, not showing that reality?