With landlords obliged to think increasingly about energy efficiency measures, new data from Legal & General’s surveying team helps identify different payback periods.
Double glazing is the most popular energy saving measure, seen by 86 per cent of the Legal & General Surveying Services.
While upgrading windows was slightly more popular than installing roof insulation, mentioned by four in five surveyors, both were well ahead of the third most popular energy efficient measure, wall insulation, mentioned by only 31 per cent of surveyors.
The research also revealed that there are a number of energy saving measures which are less commonly seen, but may still provide notable savings over the long term. These measures include solar panels (19 per cent), air source heat pumps (17 per cent) and smart energy meters (15 per cent).
Legal & General cites expert guidance saying it typically takes about 15 years to recoup installation costs for solar panels; similarly, the payback period on an air source heat pump is around 12 years.
Separate research from Legal & General suggests that there has been a 34 per cent uptick in searches for eco-friendly homes and buyers are now willing to pay a 10.5 per cent price premium for a low carbon property.
Legal & General’s Equity Economy Report also found increased interest in using equity from the property to improve energy efficiency with 13 per cent of the surveyed homeowners using the money to pay for green measures to improve energy use.
Spiralling gas and electricity bills may well be driving interest in energy efficient home improvements.And of course the government has proposed that all rental properties will need an EPC rating of C or above by 2025 for new tenancies and 2028 for existing tenancies.
Trudy Woolf – sustainability director at Legal & General Surveying Services – says: “Having polled our own team of surveyors, these findings highlight that buyers and owners are becoming increasingly conscious of the energy efficiency of their homes. It’s great to see that many homeowners are already thinking about installing energy efficient measures which are cost effective – this is something we expect will continue to rise in prominence as consumers develop a greater understanding of energy efficiency.”
