Are you a Landlord requiring a professional and trustworthy domestic energy assessor or a property inventory clerk? Do you know that the Government is proposing to change the minimum grade required to a C and above? Now is the time to get ahead of these changes and start making changes to your properties now! As Landlords ourselves we can best advise on how to get ahead and take advantage of all the grants available. A check in inventory is the most important thing you can do on any tenancy to protect yourself from any damage\deposit disputes. With years of experience managing our own portfolio we are best placed to conduct a property inventory.
A brief guide to the process:
Before an Energy Performance Certificate can be issued for the property, a physical EPC survey must be carried out by a qualified Domestic Energy Assessor also referred to as a DEA. During the inspection, it is very important the energy assessor has access to all the rooms, heating controls and the loft (if there is safe access). If there is any documentary evidence to show any recent works such insulation, double glazing etc, please have this available. Photographic evidence of the following will be required:
Front and rear sides of the property including the roof
Boiler and boiler pipes
Thermostat and radiators
Energy saving bulbs
Gas & electricity meters
Wall thickness of the main building including extensions
Windows including single and double glazing variations
Thickness of the loft insulation
Water cylinders including controls
Bath and mixer showers
The DEA may also take photographs of any unusual features in the building. Care will be taken to ensure personal items are not present within the photos taken.
Following this, the EPC Surveyor will measure the length, width and height of each floor at the property and draw a floor plan marking out any party walls and heat loss walls. A party wall is the wall that connects to an adjacent property while a heat loss wall is any wall that is exposed to external elements. A mid-terraced property has two party walls and two heat loss walls while a semi-detached property has three heat loss walls and one party wall. A detached house only has heat loss walls.
Upon completion of the above, the surveyor will then go away and input the data collected into a special software called RDSAP+ which will then generate an Energy Performance Certificate along with recommendations. An EPC can be viewed by anyone at any time via the Government website where it is uploaded.
The Energy Performance Certificate tells you:
The property performance in terms of the energy used per square meter of floor area, energy efficiency based on fuel costs and environmental impact on Carbon Dioxide (CO2).
The energy performance of the building on the date it was inspected.
The energy efficiency rating is a measure of the overall efficiency of the building. The higher the rating the more efficient the building is, and the lower the fuel bills are likely to be.
The environmental impact rating is a measure of a building’s impact upon the environment in terms of Carbon Dioxide (CO2) emissions. The lower the rating the less impact it has on the environment.
The certificate also makes recommendations for improvements that you can make.
The EPC is valid for 10 years.
The EPC certificate does not tell you:
The value of the building or cover things that are specifically considered when a valuation is provided, such as the locality of the building or the availability of public transport or facilities.
About the condition of the building or it’s services.
The inspection is non-invasive. This means that the Energy Assessor will not lift carpets, floor coverings or boards, move furniture or remove the contents of cupboards. The Energy Assessor will not remove secured panels or undo electrical fittings. If a certain area is not accessible i.e. loft and there is no documentary evidence for any insulation, the assessor cannot mark it as present. If access to the boiler or other key heating or cooling plants is not possible, it is likely that an Energy Performance Certificate cannot be produced and the inspection will have to be abandoned.
