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Written by rosalind renshaw

The Government is going right up to the wires over planned changes to Energy Performance Certificates.

The changes, which will require estate agents to produce EPCs on demand to local Trading Standards officers and which will give them seven days to order them, are still due to be introduced on July 1, with a further requirement, to attach the EPC to each set of property details to be introduced on October 1.

The EPC industry has been in limbo over the changes, but have now been told that the deadline day for the Governet to make an announcement on the timing of the changes is now June 10.

Comments

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    @Peebee
    (a buyer receives two brochures from two agents and one doesn't include an EPC, which one do you think they will keep and which one will they chuck in the bin?", MY answer would be "The one for the property they prefer". )

    Lol, I was referring to two brochures about the same property, from two agents! You know a multi-agency instruction! lol.

    Okay, the current EPC is a bit long and the graph on its own is a bit short, but would do the trick if buyers knew how the rating would effect them in terms of penalties, not just their cost of heating a property etc. but future penalties of council tax hikes and similar, which are bound to happen.

    Perhaps a bullet point summary of the EPC could be produced that takes up similar space to that of the graph and this would be sufficient.

    I think that in some parts of the country, online marketing solves most of the problems, but here in the East Midlands, where immigration is high and many people live in B&B's with no internet connection, newspapers & paper based brochures are still the order of the day.

    I agree that right now, EPC's seem to be a waste of time. Not as bad as HIP's though, but a few years down the line, EPC's could be nearly as important as the asking price in the same way that Co2 emmisions and road tax on cars are now heavily linked together.

    • 04 June 2011 00:26 AM
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    We shall have to see what the fine for non compliance is because im bound to get one......
    I asked my EPC man (in Jest) to supply each EPC in paper x20. Guess what he told me?
    IF its policed (which nothing else has been so far) and IF buyers start asking for them then it is possible it could become mainstream.
    Its a shame that this will push more of our work online. I like a good old fashion brochure me.
    Just a thought. obviously there is an increase in costs. Print/time etc. Agents can either, 1 pay the DEA less or 2 charge vendors more for the EPC or 3, both.
    I dont see the DEA's getting anything out of this.

    • 02 June 2011 18:38 PM
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    Chris. Mate - I hope we're not gonna have another fisticuffs over this...?

    You said "Put it this way, when things kick in and a buyer receives two brochures from two agents and one doesn't include an EPC, which one do you think they will keep and which one will they chuck in the bin?", MY answer would be "The one for the property they prefer".

    You are factually correct in what you state about the history behind EPCs. I share your opinion over the future of them also. HOWEVER, how they are delivered to the public is another matter - and you seem to be very much on your own in welcoming the whole document in the thought that it will form the USP that will "sell" the property. The EPC is available online for ANYONE who gives a shizzle. All they need (...as you know...) is the RRN, which can be added to the sales literature and/or added as a hyperlink on websites, and they can access the entire document. THIS guarantees the interested party that they are viewing the correct document - as EPCs can easily be tampered with in PDF format, should someone feel unscrupulous enough...

    The fridge scale is more than sufficient for the vast majority of applicants and curtain-feelers. Most don't even look at the numbers...

    The ONLY "cost" that has been mentioned so far in this discussion, is the potential cost to the planet - not to the Agent.

    I firmly agree with Country Lass and co on this one. The Kyoto Protocol was never about cutting trees down to show someone on paper how cheap your home was to run. The UNFCCC would throw a fit if they realised what is being proposed here, I am absolutely certain...

    • 02 June 2011 15:26 PM
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    Richard: More's to the point - do you live in a property where these 'improvements' are a) permissible; b) viable; and c) possible?

    Although, in fainess - the answer is still NO!

    • 02 June 2011 14:59 PM
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    If you insulated fully, installed new windows and doors, solar panels etc could you live long enough to make ny savings at all?

    • 02 June 2011 13:13 PM
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    And I'm not disagreeing with you on the need to do more to save energy, but I do disagree on how much impact an extra 5-6 pieces of paper will make.

    The graphs currently used give people an idea of the efficiency of the property, then, if they are interested in the property they can request the full EPC.

    The last time you bought a property, did you only have 2-3 sets of details from one agent? I am asuming not, unless you found your home very quickly. With the changes they are proposeing, you would have had the equivalent of the Amazon pouring through your letter box, most of it for properties that for whatever reason may not be suitable.

    Do you see the point I am trying to make? For casual buyers, it will be a huge waste of time, paper, money and energy. For more serious, motivate buyers, we can provide the full EPC when requested, and satisfy everyone.

    • 02 June 2011 12:16 PM
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    @ C/Lass

    The amount of energy that I see being wasted each year through lost heat in properties with no insulation or drafty windows pales into insignificance v the cost of a few sheets of paper per property. There are around 26 million properties in the UK and if each one saved only £100 a year in lost or wasted energy per year through modernisation or upgrading, that's a saving of 2.6 billion pounds every year, year on year v the cost of all that paper & ink would be less than a few hundred thousand pounds spread over 44,000 estate agents each year!

    It's a no brainer to me and while I accept that more could be done online, buyers will want to know anyway, more than seeing another photo of the master bedroom or something. Put it this way, when things kick in and a buyer receives two brochures from two agents and one doesn't include an EPC, which one do you think they will keep and which one will they chuck in the bin?

    Even if it wasn't the law, estate agents that shy away from putting EPC's in their brochures would do so at their at their peril. I for one want my buyers to keep hold of our brochures so that they me when they want to view something.

    • 02 June 2011 11:42 AM
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    Chris, I think the main reason we are discussing the printing isn't so much the monetary costs as the ecological ones, due to the extra paper etc. Which comes from trees. Which are something else that people keep wanting to save (me included by the way)

    I like Glen's idea of showing people where they can get the full EPC is a good one, and I think could be the perfect compromise. We make hard/soft copies available to all, and issue them to the buyer once an offer has been accepted, regardless of if they want it or not, to ensure that they are aware. We can send it out with the sales memos.

    • 02 June 2011 09:50 AM
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    It does seem a little daft adding all that paper to Sales Particulars for Estate Agents. Im all for promoting the EPC and making people aware but make it user friendly and ozone friendly.

    All they need to do is put 'The Energy Performance Cetificate can be viewed and downlaoded at www.EPCregister.com' The reference number is............ and then state if you have any questions regarding the EPC please contact the Assessor Name........., Tel.........

    And for those who now say what about those without a computer have the statement. A Hard copy is available from our Estate Agent if required and make it mandatory to supply if requested.

    Simples

    • 02 June 2011 06:36 AM
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    Come on guys, are we really that stupid? We sound supid to the none-agents reading this site, going on about the cost of printing etc. !!!!

    This stuff is basic comon sense!

    During the 1997 Kyoto Treaty much of the world signed up to measures that would save the planet from global warming and one of these measures required the government to tackle inefficiencies in all domestic properties. HIPs seemed to be a way of getting properties measured, so they stuck the EPC onto the HIPs, but when HIPs were seen to be failing, they dropped the HIPs, but had to keep the EPC's.

    Okay sure, no one asks for them except solicitors, but they will in the future!!!

    Stage one, get the majority of properties measured.
    Stage two introduce penalties & incentives to improve Britains domestic stock, which many see as a small council tax discount for A & B - EPC rating properties and a huge penalty for F & G - EPC rating properties!!!

    Anyone not already measured because they haven't moved house would be charged a rate of council tax that assumes that they have an EPC rating of F. Most home owners in this position would gladly get their home measured with an actual EPC to get the rating down and save money. Those people with inefficient homes would be motivated to improve their homes to save money on council tax.

    Right now, no one cares and yes, it just seems like a waste of ink and paper, but this is the making of one of the biggest influences about to effect the way buyers/ tenants look at property/ property values/ rents and a huge money spinner for the government no doubt!

    • 02 June 2011 02:10 AM
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    PeeBee, you're forgetting all the additional EPCs that will need to be printed because we forgot to change the aspect of the print after printing some of those fancy landscape brochures, or because we accidentally left in in black and white when we were saving cyan toner on the last print job, or because of the paper jams caused by need less waste, or because we printed off next door's EPC by accident, or because the dog ate it...

    You can add at least another 10 million to your estimate ;o)

    • 02 June 2011 00:06 AM
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    Why can't the estate agent see' no one asks to see the EPC because it's not made available to them. The public think the asset rating is the EPC because thats what is available, and who put this on show'' the estate agent.
    and to top it off he over charges for the EPC then takes his cut for doing nothing but moan about them just as he did about HIPs.
    Some are doubling the cost then calling the DEA as though they brought it in.
    A lot of Agents are making quite a lot of cash off EPCs.

    • 01 June 2011 18:45 PM
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    Alan Lucas: "...the overarching reason for EPCs is the reduction of carbon dioxide emmissions, thus reducing the greenhouse effect, thus slowing down or (hopefully) stopping global temperature rise."

    Nice speech - one fatal flaw. The existence of an EPC for a property does DIDDLY SQUAT to combat global warming.

    HOWEVER, printing an estimated 30 million (2 million properties x 15 copies each...) of them a year will help to dry up the seas no end...

    OOPS!

    • 01 June 2011 16:25 PM
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    @Red Tape, Country Lass and Alan l are all spot on and it is a shame our elected dictatorship goes up yours to everyone in the business as we know best and frankly they have no idea whatsoever.

    Nice to bang on about it though.

    I'm going off to do some work now.

    • 01 June 2011 15:09 PM
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    It will not be simply red tape in the very near future when the green finance deal comes in (October 2012), when thousands of landlords take advantage of getting free solar panels and micro chp boilers at their tenants expense.

    I agree that at the moment the EPC seems like pointless red tape, but given the appalling condition of some inner city rental properties, something has to be done.

    However, the need to print out a 6 page EPC seems highly counterproductive where environmental issues are concerned.

    • 01 June 2011 13:45 PM
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    Alan, I understand your feelings about the wellbeing of the planet and so forth, but how is the planet going to be helped by several more pages of paper being used on property details, that no-one really cares about?

    Add in the extra electricity needed to print longer details. And the extra toner etc needed in the printer. That applies to e-mailed details too, as most buyers will print them at home. If they are posted though, you will need larger envelopes, again using more paper. And since they will be heavier, more petrol will be used to transport the letters.

    They are all miniscule costs for the indivdual set of details, but when you think about all the agents, buyers and properties it all starts to mount up.

    • 01 June 2011 12:27 PM
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    For "The Officer" and "Red Tape", the overarching reason for EPCs is the reduction of carbon dioxide emmissions, thus reducing the greenhouse effect, thus slowing down or (hopefully) stopping global temperature rise. It's called "The Common Good". The fact that it makes the lives of estate agents a little more troublesome is simply a necessary evil. But I think the wellbeing of the planet's temperature system is a price worth paying! The reason nobody asks to see EPCs is the spectacularly woeful delivery of the message by government.

    • 01 June 2011 11:47 AM
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    William's right. It's EU legislation.... (which is why the Gov't was able to suspend HIPs but not EPCs).

    • 01 June 2011 10:04 AM
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    Absolutely pathetic wok by DCLG once again. Little wonder they are given little respect by those in the property industry who actually do the work and understand what is happening.

    There is no reason this couldn't have been clarified 3 months ago. As things stand commercial agents in particular don' t know what changes they are supposed to implement and when.

    • 01 June 2011 09:16 AM
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    The government probably have not admitted it, but the French have had to have them for some time now on their property particulars, so it seems to me that it's an EEC directive.

    • 01 June 2011 09:12 AM
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    Why is it that the only people who have ever asked for an EPC are the solicitors? Not one applicant has ever asked to see one.

    • 01 June 2011 09:09 AM
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    More Red tape total nonsense, Can our government get on with more serious things and put the EPC to rest.

    • 01 June 2011 07:34 AM
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