Wolf Passive Homes

EU legislation means that from 2012 all homes for sale will require an energy efficiency rating to be carried out upfront. EU legislation will make it compulsory for energy efficient ratings to be published in all UK homes for sale advertisements from 2012.

At the moment homeowners are required to commission an energy performance certificate (EPC) before putting a property on the market, but the results may not be available when potential purchasers first view it. From 2012 the EU Directive will make it compulsory for the ratings to be published upfront giving buyers vital green information.

The legislation will effectively put a green, amber or red energy efficiency grading on every For Sale board in the UK. It will also help the government to deliver its ambitious plans of reducing household carbon emissions by 29% by 2020.

Non-profit energy supplier Ebico is urging potential house sellers to start making their homes more energy efficient sooner rather than later. Founder, Phil Levermore, said: There has never been a better time. Not only could it make a property more saleable in the future, but people will also reap rewards from lower energy bills and a warmer, more comfortable home in the meantime.

The governments proposed green deal scheme, to be detailed this autumn, is expected to offer loans of up to £6,500 for home energy efficiency improvements repayable, over 20 years or more, out of savings on fuel bills.

The Energy Savings Trust recently said that the majority of the UKs least energy-efficient homes could be brought up to near-average green standards for  less than £3,000; older homes needing major modernisation, including a new central heating system, would need at least £5,000 to bring them into line.

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