According to the Electronic Property Information Mapping Service (epIMS), up to 95% of UK landlords don’t know their rental properties’ EPC ratings. The good news is that it’s easy to understand the EPC and – even better – it’s easy to use this knowledge to improve the EPC on rental properties.
How are EPCs calculated?
Most people know that an EPC is graded from A to G, but not many know that there’s a numerical score behind those letters. A property will score between 0 and 100 Standard Assessment Procedure (SAP) points, with a score of 92-100 SAP points meaning an A rating. A B rating needs 81 to 91 SAP points and a C needs 69 to 80.
It’s really useful for landlords to know their SAP score for a particular property because it might have 67 points, which is a D but is also just a quick fix from a C.
Understanding SAP scores can help landlords to improve EPCs
epIMS found that many energy improvements carried a fairly standard number of SAP points, so landlords can work out how to “earn” a better EPC rating.
There are some easy wins
The ratings boundaries are quite narrow, so if a property is a D or even an E on its EPC, it’s possible to bring it up to a C without breaking the bank.
Simply by adding insulation to a hot water tank can add around 1.7 points, while including a hot water thermostat bumps the score up by a further 2.4 SAP points. Low energy lighting helps out by adding 1.1 SAP points to an overall EPC score – not a huge amount, but if the property is borderline, then this could be vital.
It’s sometimes better to think about points rather than energy efficiency
It might sound counterintuitive, but adding the most sustainable features to a home isn’t always the best way to add points and therefore improve an EPC rating.
Going large with a biomass boiler sounds like you’ll smash your EPC rating out of the park. However, replacing your creaky old boiler with a fancy condensing version adds 23 SAP points compared to the 12 points earned by the biomass option.
Reach for the skies
This isn’t to say that eco alternatives aren’t good EPC earners, as solar panels will add an average of 9.91 SAP points and a wind turbine will garner an average of 6.39.
When it comes to insulation, you might automatically think of double glazing, but while it’s great, you’ll only bump up by 3.3 points, so add roof insulation for 9.91 points or wall insulation for 7.7 points.
Using quick EPC fixes can save a lot of money
With 2030 – and the requirement for all rentals to be at least a C – approaching, these quick fixes are a relatively cheap and easy way of achieving that all-important C without spending a fortune.
