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Do I Need An Energy Performance Certificate To Sell My Property?

Do I Need An Energy Performance Certificate To Sell My Property?

If your property has three or more bedrooms then you will have to produce an Energy Performance Certificate in order to sell your property.  The Energy Performance Certificate was brought in to being as part of the infamous Home Information Packs, often referred to as HIPs, which initially applied to properties that have four or more bedrooms.  Although HIPs were abolished in 2010, the requirement to have an Energy Performance Certificate remains.

How Do I Get an Energy Performance Certificate?

In order to get an Energy Performance Certificate you will have to have an energy survey undertaken by a surveyor who will come round and have a look at your loft insulation, what type of domestic boiler you have, whether or not you have double glazing and so on.  Then all the information required is fed into a software programme that will automatically form a calculation and provide you with an energy efficiency rating.

In addition to the energy efficiency rating there is also a recommended value given that indicates the potential to improve energy efficiency.  So for example if you do not have double glazing, or you don’t have a condensing boiler then the recommended value will ensure that these are included as the value of potentially improving the energy efficiency of the home.

There is also a section about the environmental impact of your property and also an indication of the energy costs that will be incurred throughout the year.  But the problem is that these do not relate to how much you actually spend, they are simply based on calculations that are done.  So for example you may actually have quite low heating costs because you keep your heating at a reasonable level, but the energy costs that will be displayed in your Energy Performance Certificate will not be based on actual costs, but what is seen as reasonable.

Details of your Property

Your energy efficiency certificate will have details of the property address, what kind of property it is, when the inspections was carried out, the date of the certificate and a serial number for it, as well as the total floor area.  This makes the certificate very much based on a property and not on what you have in the property, or how many gadgets you may have.

Getting a Good Energy Efficiency Certificate

It is actually really important to get a good energy efficiency certificate because this will really help to sell your home.  If you have not had your loft insulated, then consider doing this as a priority because you can get government funding.  You may also wish to consider having cavity wall insulation, or installing a condensing boiler rather than having a traditional boiler.  Also if you do not have double glazing then this is something that you may want to think about very carefully, because double glazing is seen as important in terms of keeping fuel and energy costs low.

The more you can prove that your home is energy efficient, then for the better this will be in terms of being able to sell your home.  Although not everyone is an Eco-warrior, most people are a little concerned about rising energy costs and keeping them under control and that is why it is so important to have a good energy efficiency certificate.