HELP PLEASE!! BUYING HOUSE WITH LOW (F) EPC RATING

simon_or

What dimbo said. EPC ratings are ridiculously easy to game so if you really want to improve the rating for whatever reason, then should be plenty you can do.

I've read that the EPC assessment process is due to be updated, so don't know if that will make any difference to what I've said above

Doozergirl

Swipe said:

ProDave said:

I keep saying this but few agree.

I think they should be worth less now and you should pay a lot less than a house with say EPC B.  

The housing market doesn't care what you think.

But he is totally right. 

And the housing market needs to change to reflect that we are supposed to be moving to net zero, not just the fact that energy bills are spiralling.    Mortgage lenders are starting to set themselves targets for larger book % of higher rated homes.  Valuers need to start reflecting the sheer cost of upgrading homes towards a half decent level of retrofit, let alone net zero by 2050.  Valuers always seem to accept no cost difference between different types of houses based on size, but I think it is a matter of when, not if, that changes.  

I've spent my working lifetime upgrading homes but if I were a FTB on a tight budget, I wouldn't buy an older home.   People really need to start thinking about the genuine costs of not doing the work needed, in many ways.   

markin

Generally the people who can afford the bigger homes can usually afford the bills to heat them, And can afford the Solar and heat pumps and any other upgrades, So it will be a long time to change, On the poorer end of the market its why homes end up going for £1 from the council if you promise to spend £10k on doing it up, Or they go up for auction at £20-40k

Doozergirl

markin said:

Generally the people who can afford the bigger homes can usually afford the bills to heat them, And can afford the Solar and heat pumps and any other upgrades, So it will be a long time to change, On the poorer end of the market its why homes end up going for £1 from the council if you promise to spend £10k on doing it up, Or they go up for auction at £20-40k

It will be driven by policy, not by people.  

Woolsery

Doozergirl said:

markin said:

Generally the people who can afford the bigger homes can usually afford the bills to heat them, And can afford the Solar and heat pumps and any other upgrades, So it will be a long time to change, On the poorer end of the market its why homes end up going for £1 from the council if you promise to spend £10k on doing it up, Or they go up for auction at £20-40k

It will be driven by policy, not by people.  

Yes, the policy of the World Economic Forum.

woodpeckerx

P0123 said

I am mostly concerned because the EPC certificate depicts a number of steps which will cost a lot of money.

I wouldn't be concerned at all, none of the steps are required and if you did decide to do them you may never recover the costs you put into it. If its the property you want buy it.

EPCs are worthless, not fit for purpose, a complete waste of money and hopefully will soon be scrapped, see here:-

https://propertyindustryeye.com/jacob-rees-mogg-urged-to-scrap-worthless-epc-certificates/

markin

woodpeckerx said:

P0123 said

I am mostly concerned because the EPC certificate depicts a number of steps which will cost a lot of money.

I wouldn't be concerned at all, none of the steps are required and if you did decide to do them you may never recover the costs you put into it. If its the property you want buy it.

EPCs are worthless, not fit for purpose, a complete waste of money and hopefully will soon be scrapped, see here:-

https://propertyindustryeye.com/jacob-rees-mogg-urged-to-scrap-worthless-epc-certificates/

Only buy if you can afford the 400-700 a month to heat it in its current state, or to do the upgrades.

You can look up the usage but 18,000kwh for heat and 3,000kwh for hot water at 29p  £6,090, moving to an E7 tariff would not help much if at all without storage heaters.

BikingBud

P0123 said:

I am a potential first-time buyer, (although the way the property market is going, it is definitely a seller's market and I may well be priced out of buying anything!), and the first property that I have arranged to view has a low EPC rating of F.

I am mostly concerned because the EPC certificate depicts a number of steps which will cost a lot of money.  I cannot afford to pay the top end of their generic quotes for each step on top of the asking price, but I do want to ensure that I am NOT losing too much heat, using too much electricity, etc, particularly bearing in mind the way the energy prices are rising extortionately.  (Even in my current compact flat, the bill has already doubled, let alone when we reach the next increase in the Autumn!)

I am attaching a copy of the page(s)that I am referring to, hopefully to explain things better.  (You may have to zoom in to view them fully.)



I have tried to speak to the Agent, who doesn't really know if all of these points need to be addressed, nor any pricing.

Without having the survey carried out, (which wouldn't be until after an offer is made), and not being able to ask for quotes from every builder, electrician, energy company, etc, how can I tell IF I NEED to carry out all of these steps, and whether it will have a big impact on me living there, and my bills, if I only address a couple more affordable steps for now?

I hope this makes sense, and would appreciate any help and advice, (asap, as I am due to view next week, and it is a popular property), and I am new to this kind of thing!

Many thanks, in advance!

How is it legally permissible to assume the construction of the walls and then provide an estimate of between £4k and £14K, I
believe they used to call them snake oil salesmen.

Notwithstanding that pointless document there has to be a focus on improving the energy efficiency of houses, as I mentioned before people seem willing to blow £15k on a new kitchen with must have granite worktops but the emphasis on really improving the fabric of the housing stock is not there.

Unfortunately with the very limited housing available and crazy levels of demand there is little leverage to reduce houses in poor condition. 

ComicGeek

BikingBud said:

P0123 said:

I am a potential first-time buyer, (although the way the property market is going, it is definitely a seller's market and I may well be priced out of buying anything!), and the first property that I have arranged to view has a low EPC rating of F.

I am mostly concerned because the EPC certificate depicts a number of steps which will cost a lot of money.  I cannot afford to pay the top end of their generic quotes for each step on top of the asking price, but I do want to ensure that I am NOT losing too much heat, using too much electricity, etc, particularly bearing in mind the way the energy prices are rising extortionately.  (Even in my current compact flat, the bill has already doubled, let alone when we reach the next increase in the Autumn!)

I am attaching a copy of the page(s)that I am referring to, hopefully to explain things better.  (You may have to zoom in to view them fully.)



I have tried to speak to the Agent, who doesn't really know if all of these points need to be addressed, nor any pricing.

Without having the survey carried out, (which wouldn't be until after an offer is made), and not being able to ask for quotes from every builder, electrician, energy company, etc, how can I tell IF I NEED to carry out all of these steps, and whether it will have a big impact on me living there, and my bills, if I only address a couple more affordable steps for now?

I hope this makes sense, and would appreciate any help and advice, (asap, as I am due to view next week, and it is a popular property), and I am new to this kind of thing!

Many thanks, in advance!

How is it legally permissible to assume the construction of the walls and then provide an estimate of between £4k and £14K, I
believe they used to call them snake oil salesmen.

Because that is what the Government decided was the correct price range for that type of construction and area - it's not the assessor making/marking up costs, they are costs set by the Government.

The EPC has arguably done its job partly right here in that it has raised a significant issue about ongoing energy prices. It doesn't help that the Government are still using out of date unit energy costs, and that real life usage is also significantly higher than the quoted estimates - both those factors could mean actual energy costs are 4-5 times that quoted.

But seriously - solid brick uninsulated house with electric boiler is probably the worst possible scenario, would be vastly cheaper to install an oil boiler! Energy bills could be more than the mortgage payments, that would certainly get people thinking seriously about what they buy.

markin

That EPC truly is rubbish, here's a 3 bed semi with no cavity, 72sqm. I looked up this house last month and i think it was around 14-16k for gas use, Its a D56