UK Home Energy Performance Certificate (EPC)

 What is an EPC D rating and how do I improve it? 什么是 EPC D 评级以及如何提高它？

Find out more about your home’s EPC D rating and how you can improve energy efficiency 详细了解您家的 EPC D 评级以及如何提高能源效率

Updated 1970s house with wood cladding 更新后的 20 世纪 70 年代房屋，采用木质覆层

SINCE MAY 18, 2022

Does your home have an EPC D rating? An Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) is a measure of your property’s energy efficiency. If you are selling or renting out a property you are legally obliged to have this document to show prospective buyers or tenants how expensive the property will be to run.

EPC ratings also include recommendations for improving efficiency. For each measure, it will tell you how much it will cost to install and the potential savings that you could make.

A quick visual guide shows you how efficient your property is, with bands from A to G. The most efficient homes, which use the least amount of fuel are in band A and the least efficient are in band G. The average rating for a property in England and Wales is in band D.

What is an EPC D rating?

Every EPC rating corresponds to scores reflecting the government’s Standard Assessment Procedure (SAP) and goes from 1 to 100 plus SAP points. 

An EPC D Rating is equivalent of between 55 and 68 SAP points. 

In March 2021, the median energy efficiency score was 66 in England and 64 in Wales, the equivalent of Band D.

Energy Performance Certificate ratings A to G

Score; Energy Rating; 

92+ ; A

81-91 ; B (Potential 85/B)

69-80 ; C

55-68 ; D (Current 63/D)

39-54 ; E

21-38 ; F

1 - 20 ; G

If you are buying a new home, an EPC certificate could help you compare properties you may be looking at. If you are a seller, improving your rating could help boost the value of your property. Research from moneysupermarket.com shows the average home could be worth as much as 14 per cent more if it was upgraded to an A rating.

‘An EPC indicates how much it will cost to heat and power a property, which is vital to know given the rising cost of energy. 'An EPC with a high rating adds value to your property and will encourage buyers, so if you're looking to sell your home it's a good idea to evaluate whether anything can be done to improve your EPC.’

Why does my home have an EPC D rating?

Your EPC will cover current and potential energy saving costs, looking at heating hot water, and lighting. It will then give you a breakdown of each element of your property with a description and energy rating. This will help you to understand the effectiveness of the construction of your building, your heating and hot water system, and your lighting.

The EPC will detail how much heat you are expected to use in the property, as well as how you can reduce that by improving the insulation.

‘Every property is different,' 

 'A typical D property would look like a late 1970s semi that is not very well insulated. It's likely to have a dated boiler, and not great double glazing.’

Exterior of 1970s terraced house with green front door

Is an EPC D rating bad?

This is the average score in the UK but the government has set a major target for all UK homes to have no lower than an EPC rating of C by 2035. 

For landlords, the Minimum Energy Standards (MEES) rating could also be set to rise from 2025 to C as the government pushes ahead with their ambitious targets to achieve net-zero by 2050.

'The average for a home in the UK is currently an EPC rating D, but the government hopes to raise this to a EPC C rating by 2025/26 and it will be essential for landlords to achieve this rating, or they could risk being fined,' adds online lettings agent.

‘Whilst a D rating is generally acceptable, there is room for improvement to increase the energy efficiency of your property. Look into areas that will make the biggest impact on energy savings, such as investing in double glazing and ensuring that your home is fully insulated.’

Having a more energy-efficient home will equal a higher property value and you will save money on your fuel bills. According to the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS), the average energy costs for a home with an EPC C rating are around £300 cheaper than a band D property.

Loft bedroom with twin beds and yellow crochet rug

How can I improve my D EPC rating?

There are various ways you can improve your EPC rating. Given the current climate, now is an excellent time to start thinking about ways you could make your property more efficient.

‘The first point of call for any property is to conduct an audit of what you need to do to your property based on when it was built, what eco features and EPC rating it currently has. Also whether your listed building needs an EPC rating. 'There are key differentiators within the EPC rating system that can help you start on the improvement process.’

Common recommendations include:

1. Improve your insulation

Installing insulation in wall cavities and lofts could help you save energy and improve your EPC rating considerably. Recommendations suggest that insulation should be 270mm thick and this could lead to a difference between 15 to 20 points on your EPC.

2. Upgrade your boiler

Installing a new more energy-efficient boiler can reduce the energy consumption of your property. Other recommendations may include considering renewable energy technology, such as solar panels or heat pumps to power that boiler.

3. Use energy-efficient light bulbs

LED bulbs are more expensive to buy than standard bulbs but use 90 per cent less energy than normal lightbulbs. This change could improve your energy efficiency with minimal effort.

4. Invest in new glazing

If you have single glazed windows or old double glazing, the latest generation of glazing will help to insulate your property and banish draughts.

5. Install a smart meter

Smart meters are a great way of seeing how much energy you are using and so you can make changes that can impact how efficient your energy usage is.

A report from the Energy Saving Trust found that 85 per cent of people with smart meters in their properties changed their habits to save energy.

Property Details Glossary

When you’re searching for a property to buy or to rent on Rightmove, you’ll see there are lots of different terms used on the property details page. These describe how much it will cost and how long you can live there for.

Sales Listings:

●Price

Knowing the purchase price means you can work out the total cost of buying the property. Not only mortgage payments and deposit, but also any stamp duty, legal and moving costs.

●Type of Tenure:

Knowing the tenure of a property means you know how you’d legally own it and if there are any other costs or obligations linked with it.

●Freehold

Freehold means you own the property and the land it’s built on. You’ll usually be responsible for maintenance of the property and have more freedom to extend or change it.

●Share of Freehold

Sometimes the freehold ownership is shared between multiple properties in the same building, such as flats or maisonettes.

This means you’ll usually be responsible for maintenance of the property and have more freedom to alter or change it.

●Leasehold

Leasehold means you buy the right to live in a property for a fixed number of years. A freeholder will own the land the property is built on. And generally, you’ll have to pay ground rent and services charges.

The length of the leasehold is recorded on the lease agreement. If the lease runs out, the ownership goes back to the freeholder. Leases can be extended, but it can be expensive.

The lease will outline what maintenance you and the freeholder are each responsible for. It’s likely you’ll need the freeholder’s permission to alter your home.

●Commonhold

Commonhold is a type of freehold ownership for a property that’s part of an estate.

So, a flat within a block can be owned as freehold. And the common parts, like stairs and hallways, are owned and managed by a commonhold association, which is owned by the freeholders of the properties.

You’ll be required to join the commonhold association as an owner of a property in the commonhold. And you’ll need to contribute towards the cost of maintaining the estate.

●Shared Ownership

Shared ownership is a form of leasehold where you buy a percentage of the property, and pay rent on the share you don’t own. You may be able to purchase the remaining share at additional cost. When you want to sell the property you might need permission.

●Length of Lease

The length of a lease means how long you’ve bought the right to live in the property for. The leasehold will be for a fixed number of years and will be recorded on the lease agreement.

When the lease runs out, the ownership goes back to the freeholder. Leases can be extended, but it can be expensive.

●Ground Rent

Ground rent is a regular payment made by the leaseholder to the freeholder, or management company.

How much you pay and how often you pay it will be written into the conditions of your lease. If you don’t pay your ground rent, the freeholder could take you to court and ultimately repossess your property.

Ground rent varies from property to property. Some could be a few pounds a year, and others several hundred pounds or more.

●Ground Rent Review Period

Ground rent will have a review period written into the leasehold agreement. This means the amount of ground rent can increase each time it’s reviewed. Costs which appear affordable now may not be in the future.

●Peppercorn Rent

A peppercorn rent is used to describe a very low or token rent paid by a tenant to a landlord. It allows the tenant a right over the land and is likely to be charged on an annual basis. The name comes from leases where historically the rent was a peppercorn or a pound of peppercorns per year.

●Annual Service Charge

Service charges are a regular payment for things like building insurance, caretakers, lighting, heating, cleaning and maintenance for shared areas of an estate.

Service charges are common for leasehold properties, but some newer freehold homes may also include a requirement to contribute towards maintenance of the estate’s communal facilities. These costs can increase and might be required to cover future maintenance that’s currently unknown. This is called a reserve or sinking fund. Always make sure that you understand the charges.

Sales Listings (auctions):

●Guide Price

An indication of a seller’s minimum expectation at auction and given as a “Guide Price” or a range of “Guide Prices”. This is not necessarily the figure a property will sell for and is subject to change prior to the auction.

●Reserve Price

Each auction property will be subject to a “Reserve Price” below which the property cannot be sold at auction. Normally the “Reserve Price” will be set within the range of “Guide Prices” or no more than 10% above a single “Guide Price”.

Lettings Listings:

●Rent

Knowing the rental price means you know how much, and how often, you need to pay rent. This can help you plan your budget, and reduce the chance of missing a payment.

●Security Deposit

A deposit provides security for a landlord against damage, or unpaid rent by a tenant.

●Tenancy Length

The tenancy length is how long the landlord offers to let the property for. It is the minimum length of the tenancy and many landlords are willing to offer longer term tenancies. This will be recorded on a contract, or tenancy agreement, between you and a landlord.

Sales and Lettings listings:

●Council Tax Band

Council tax is a payment made to your local authority in order to pay for local services like schools, libraries, and refuse or recycling collections. The amount of council tax you pay depends on the value of the property you’re living in.

There are some situations where you don’t have to pay council tax. Students, for example, aren’t required to pay, and some rental properties will include council tax within the rent.

Council tax bands for new homes will be estimated if the council hasn’t confirmed them yet.

●EPC Rating ( scroll up for details)

An Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) provides you with information about a home’s energy efficiency rating. The rating ranges from A (most efficient) to G (least efficient). An EPC must be ordered before a property is put up for sale or rent, and is valid for 10 years.