How can UK property investors help reach the net-zero goal?
The UK government plans to reach the net-zero goals by 2050.
Homes in the UK account for around 15% of the country’s greenhouse gas emissions, according to a report by the Climate Change Committee (CCC). Of the UK’s almost 30 million residential properties, a huge amount of existing, older housing stock would need to make some big changes to enable the government to meet its net-zero targets by 2050.
The pledges being made during the Cop26 conference spell some big changes across many industries. In the housing market, the challenge of retrofitting net-zero homes to enable them to meet energy efficiency standards is significant.
New-build properties are among the few that generate the smallest carbon footprints. They tend to be built with the most modern insulation methods, highly efficient windows and doors, as well as interior aspects that contribute to lower utility usage.
A spokesman for the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) says: “Huge progress is already being made in improving the energy efficiency of UK homes, and we are investing almost £6.6bn to support people to install energy efficiency measures to help reduce monthly energy bills.
“We have set out plans to support low-income households, in particular, ensuring they are some of the earliest to benefit from the move to net zero.”
At the moment, all privately rented homes in the UK must have an energy performance certificate (EPC) rated at a minimum of E. There is a target for this to be raised to a minimum of C by 2030, or even 2025.
For landlords who own homes that don’t meet the standards, there is a spending cap of £3,500 including VAT. This means that the owner must spend up to this amount making improvements, even if those improvements don’t enable it to reach the minimum rating.
The government also offers a Green Deal, where eligible property owners can apply for a loan to improve their building’s energy efficiency.
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