When selling or renting a home, it has become mandatory to provide an energy performance certificate. In London the EPB (for Energy Performance of Buildings) or EPD (for Energy Performance Diagnosis) aims to evaluate the amount of energy consumed or estimated of a building in its current use. He attributes to each building an index of its own, on a scale of a (very economical) to G (very energy-intensive). It is sort of the “energy identity card” of buildings. This index is calculated from the energy characteristics resulting from the energy audit of the building such as the insulation, the areas of loss, the type of boiler, the cooling and ventilation system. These data are collected by a rectifier who establishes then calculations to determine the EPC of the building.
EPC certificate also issues recommendations for energy savings by indicating what types of optimizations or work to do to improve the energy performance of the building. This certificate is mandatory for any real estate transaction in Europe, whether for sale or rental. There are two types of EPC certificates, the certificate for single-family dwellings, and the certificate for tertiary unit (for offices of more than 500 m²).
What is the EPC for?
The energy performance certificate is initially informative. It makes it possible to present to the candidate for the purchase or the rent of the real estate. The energy performance certificate displays several indicators, such as building energy class, CO2 consumption, primary energy consumption, etc. : this allows the future buyer to see the detailed energy profile of the property before buying, and thus compare the various energy costs to help in its decision. The energy performance certificate can also be used in London as a basis for saving energy: following its recommendations, the owner or tenant can make all kinds of improvements and works to optimize the use of energy resources of the building.
When is the energy performance certificate mandatory?
The energy performance certificate is mandatory when it is in the case of a sale or lease, except when the building is acquired for demolition (upon presentation of the acknowledgment of receipt of the application permit to demolish). It must be mentioned in any advertising sale or rental and must be established before the sale of the property. The indicators that must appear in advertisements are the following:
- The unique code of the certificate or identification number;
- Total primary energy consumption over a standard year, in kWh
- Specific primary energy consumption in a standard year, in kWh
- The energy class or building label
Note that the mandatory indicators vary from one region to another, so it is important to find out beforehand.
The energy performance certificate must be sent to the purchaser in London and before the signing of the sale or rental agreement, the original in the case of a sale and the copy in the case of a lease. This formality will also be mentioned in the agreement to certify the legal conformity of the sale/lease. If the process is not followed, the owner may be subject to penalties. At the advertising stage, the absence of an energy performance certificate is punishable by a fixed fine of € 1,000 and the absence of mention of the energy performance certificate, even if it exists, is liable to € 500 Fine. If the certificate is not sent to the buyer, the fine is also 500 €. For a new property or having been built after 2010, the procedure is still different.
Only houses and apartments are now subject to this procedure. The same goes for the certification of multi-owner housing. For new constructions, the certificate issued is then of “new building” type and established based on the declaration of the energy performance certificate having followed the construction site in UK and moreover properly inspect land and get Landlord Certificate.
Click Here for More information about London Property Inspections
