Landlords may be forced to upgrade rental properties by law following an announcement by Grant Shapps, the Governments Minister of State for Housing and Local Government. The Localism Bill will be amended to include a requirement for private rental properties to meet higher standards. Grant Shapps said: “I will not let the private sector be a poor-quality alternative to the high-quality social rented sector.”
Already, the local letting agents - Martin & Co Hinckley, have experienced the potential impact of this following the Council’s review of the Energy Performance Certificates of all advertised rental properties. This has resulted in a demand for a landlord to improve the heating within a rental property.
Under the legislation, rental properties with a SAP rating (the Governments 'Standard Assessment Procedure' for energy rating of dwellings) of below F35 can be taken as a ‘Category 1 Hazard under the Housing Health and Safety Rating System’ and as such the Local Authority has a duty to remedy all Category 1 hazards.
A SAP energy rating seeks to calculate a score of between 1 to 100+ for the annual energy costs due to the:
The higher the number the lower the fuel running costs, with 100 representing zero energy costs. Obviously, buildings with a rating in excess of 100 are net exporters of energy.
For further information on the letting of property or energy performance please contact Steve Chadwick at Martin & Co - Letting Agents in Hinckley on 01455 268 982.
Click here to find out more about the letting agents Martin & Co. Hinckley.
