Whenever you move into a property, whether you’re renting or buying, one of the things you’ll be given is an EPC certificate. For many people this certificate is just more paperwork, and it gets put in a drawer somewhere and never looked at again. But EPC certificates can be incredibly useful things, giving you an insight into the house functions and better still – an idea of how much the house will cost to run. So to help you make the most informed decision possible, we wanted to go through what an EPC is, how they work, and what to look for.
What Is An EPC Certificate?
EPC stands for Energy Performance Certificate, and it’s a report on the amount of energy a property uses at the time of the report. They were first introduced in 2007 as a way of increasing awareness about energy efficiency, and the benefits homeowners and tenants could gain with just a few simple changes. It grades a number of categories using a traffic light system, with green (A) being highly efficient and red (G) being inefficient. Not only that, but it includes a section that highlights the savings you could see and which areas you should focus on first. The benefits of this system were quickly apparent, and in 2008, just one year later, EPCs became a legal requirement for all properties.
What Does an EPC Certificate Include?
While the design of the EPC has changed a lot over the years, the basic information included on them has stayed much the same. Each EPC certificate should include the following information:
Current energy costs & potential savings: A breakdown of the heating, lighting and hot water costs of the property, not including energy used by ‘white goods’. It’s there to give you a good comparison between properties.
Energy efficiency rating: A colour-coded representation of the property’s current energy efficiency, and what it could potentially reach. This is the most visually striking thing on the report and what most people will recognise.
Recommended measures: A rough outline of the things you could do to improve your energy efficiency and lower your bills. This will vary from property to property, and will give you a ‘rating after improvement’ column so you can see the results.
Performance summary: This section will show a detailed breakdown of various parts of the property and give you a star rating for each one, and an overall star rating.
How Long Are They Valid For?
The good news is that EPCs aren’t something that need renewing every year. In fact, depending on how long you stay in the property you might not need to worry about it at all. EPCs are valid for 10 years from the date of issue, and they are awarded to the property and not the person. You can check if your property has an EPC, and how long it has until it needs renewing, by clicking here.
Do You Have To Have One?
In a word, yes. Since 2008 EPC’s have been a legal requirement for selling or renting out properties, so if you are buying or renting, you should have been given an EPC certificate for the property as part of the paperwork. In fact, sellers or landlords who don’t get a valid EPC within 7 days of putting their property on the market can find themselves facing a fine of £5,000.
At Northwood, it’s our job to make sure you have everything you need when you move into a new property, whether you’ve bought it or are renting. We help landlords ensure they have the correct certificates in place and remind them when they are due for renewal, and we will supply buyers with an updated EPC during the sales process. If you would like to know more about EPC’s or have any questions about yours, just get in touch with the team today.
