Why do I need an Energy Performance Certificate? If you’re thinking about selling your property then you need to know about Energy Peformance Certificates (EPC).

Introduced back in 2007, it is a legal requirement for anyone selling a home to have one in place, or to have plans to do so within seven days of the property going on the market.

Failure to provide an EPC can lead to a £200 fine from Trading Standards.

An EPC provides potential buyers with information about a property’s energy use and importantly ways in which energy performance can be improved.

Costing in the region of £60 – £120, an EPC can be obtained through an accredited assessor and is valid for as long as 10 years.

Homes are evaluated and given a rating from A to G with A being the most efficent and G being the least efficent.

As we detailed in our article, ‘Costs when selling your home’ there are already many different fees which can be involved when moving property, and although you probably aren’t overjoyed about having to pay for one more thing, there are certainly benefits to it.

The EPC will offer details of how you could make your home greener and how much it would cost to do so.

For example, it may reccomend replacing windows with double glazing and increasing the amount of insulation in their lofts.

Further to this it will also detail the amount of money that could be saved by following recommendations and it will predict what your new rating will be following those improvements.

For further information, read our online guide to selling your home.

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