Houses in Wakefield & Leeds are Below the Recommended Energy Rating
New Open Property Group research found that just 36% of homes in Leeds and 38% meet the recommended Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) rating of ‘C’.
The Sell House Fast Agency found that across all of England, only 40% of houses actually have an EPC rating of C or above.
The EPC scale is ranked from A-G and is used to measure the efficiency of a property based on the level of its emissions, its potential heat or energy loss and its likely fuel costs.
Across the whole Yorkshire and The Humber region, the average amount of houses that meet the energy target was just over 25%.
Jason Harris-Cohen said:
“The Government is proving relentless in its quest to be carbon net zero by 2050. Landlords are seen as a soft target and raising the bar in terms of EPC standards feels somewhat unfair. Buy-to-let owners have not long finished ensuring their properties meet the current ‘E’ EPC rating but now face three years of further eco improvements to reach a new ‘C’ target. Sadly, the energy efficiency measures required in the near future are the most expensive. Switching to LED light bulbs alone isn’t going to be enough – we’re moving into the territory of solar panels, cavity wall insulation and air source heat pumps.”
“The UK’s ageing housing stock also presents an issue, with period and pre-war properties falling short when it comes to EPC ratings. We forecast a trend towards investing in new homes – especially given that data released by the Government showed that 97% of new homes delivered in the second quarter of 2021 had an EPC rating of C or above.”
