What is an Energy Performance Certificate?
An EPC is required whenever a property is built, sold or rented. Once your property has been assessed and the EPC has been obtained, it remains valid for ten years.
Energy Performance Certificates are essential for any homeowner. Read our guide to find out what they are and how they can save you money.
An EPC is required whenever a property is built, sold or rented. Once your property has been assessed and the EPC has been obtained, it remains valid for ten years.
Once your property has been assessed, the EPC will provide you with energy efficiency information about your property. This information is split into four sections:
• General information about the property, including date of assessment
• A reference number
• An estimation of how much it will cost to power and heat your property based on your home’s energy performance
• An energy-efficiency rating (A-G)
• An Environmental Impact Carbon Dioxide rating
• Advice on how much CO2 emissions could be reduced by if your property has a low efficiency rating
• Recommendations to improve your home’s energy-efficiency
• The cost of implementing these changes
• An outline, in pounds and pence, of how much each change could potentially save you
New homes are considerably more energy-efficient than older properties. In fact, 95% of new build properties are rated between A-C for energy efficiency, with the majority of these rated A or B.
A higher EPC rating results in lower household bills and, with rising energy costs, this is an important aspect to consider when buying a new home.
Data from the Home Builders Federation (HBF) found that on average, the combined bills of an older property amount to £1,029 per year, but for newer properties, it’s just £474 - a saving of £555. The same research found that heating bills in new builds were 59% cheaper than older properties amounting to a saving of £395.
The savings continue across lighting and water usage. On average, owners of older properties spend £82 a year on lighting and £141 for hot water, but new build owners spend only £70 and £113 respectively.
When you buy with us, we've already considered how we could save you money long-term by incorporating a range of energy efficient features to keep the cost of bills down.