My famous friend, Alexander, sent me an email this morning which made me think the simple things / little things can make a difference too.
For example, think about paperless billing - many companies will give you a discount, albeit a small one, if you elect to go for paperless billing - so you save a little money.
But, if you think in terms of carbon footprint, there is less manufacturing overhead and less delivery miles - so your carbon footprint improves too.
Energy efficiency isn't always about the big things, s little change like this multiplied up by a significant percentage of the population would have a BIG impact, so chedck out your bills or bank statements and see if you have the option to reduce your paper communication and make that change.
At Surrey Energy Consultants, our principal activity is in the production of Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs), but if we can pass on practical tips like this along the way, so much the better.
Friday 28 May 2010
Monday 24 May 2010
HIP Providers - what happens next?
Many of the major HIP providers are now in a serious place. The decision last week to axe HIPs has renedered their revenue stream redundant at a stroke.
So now they are moving into the conveyancing space and aiming to compete with local solicitors - an interesting development & one I shall be keeping an eye on.
So for the man on the street, what are the simple do's and don'ts when transacting a property purchase / sale. The considered wisdom would suggest
DO keep everything simple, buying a house is definitely a situation where separate specialisations are better than a remote one stop shop.
DO find a local solicitor you can work with, it may cost a little more, but will be worth it if problems arise. Just put it in the context of the value of the overall transaction.
DO find out if your estate agent is 'pushing' a particular financing or conveyancing option if they are on any form of commission. If they are probably best to walk away - remember they need your business, so you have the control.
DO find an independant energy assessor to produce your EPC - this is still needed, even though HIPs are gone. Start with the energy assessors accreditation schemes they will all probably list local practitioners in your area and most are likely to be cheaper if you deal with them direct, rather than through the many umbrella organisations and panels out there.
Of course, as a practicing Domestic and Commercial Energy assessor, I have a vested interest in this point of view. I would like to have a good working relationship with local estate agents and solicitors to provide my piece of the jigsaw (the EPC) to customers in the local community. Of course the major nationwide HIP providers are not going to go away without trying to re-invent their revenue stream, but the sea change that the removal of HIPs has caused at least levels the playing field a little.
If you are (or are about to be) in a property transaction and need an EPC, then please get in touch, at Surrey energy Consultants, we would be very happy to help.
So now they are moving into the conveyancing space and aiming to compete with local solicitors - an interesting development & one I shall be keeping an eye on.
So for the man on the street, what are the simple do's and don'ts when transacting a property purchase / sale. The considered wisdom would suggest
DO keep everything simple, buying a house is definitely a situation where separate specialisations are better than a remote one stop shop.
DO find a local solicitor you can work with, it may cost a little more, but will be worth it if problems arise. Just put it in the context of the value of the overall transaction.
DO find out if your estate agent is 'pushing' a particular financing or conveyancing option if they are on any form of commission. If they are probably best to walk away - remember they need your business, so you have the control.
DO find an independant energy assessor to produce your EPC - this is still needed, even though HIPs are gone. Start with the energy assessors accreditation schemes they will all probably list local practitioners in your area and most are likely to be cheaper if you deal with them direct, rather than through the many umbrella organisations and panels out there.
Of course, as a practicing Domestic and Commercial Energy assessor, I have a vested interest in this point of view. I would like to have a good working relationship with local estate agents and solicitors to provide my piece of the jigsaw (the EPC) to customers in the local community. Of course the major nationwide HIP providers are not going to go away without trying to re-invent their revenue stream, but the sea change that the removal of HIPs has caused at least levels the playing field a little.
If you are (or are about to be) in a property transaction and need an EPC, then please get in touch, at Surrey energy Consultants, we would be very happy to help.
Thursday 20 May 2010
HIPs are History
Announcements made today by Eric Pickles have suspended the requirement for HIPs with immediate effect. This is welcome news for the Estate Agent community who have what they perceive as a roadblock removed from the sales process.
Sellers are also likely to not be unhappy about this as they saw the cost of HIP production as an un-needed cost.
For us industry professionals, who now need to re-group, at least the production of EPCs is still mandaded, within 28 days of commencement of marketing the property.
Time will tell how the market adjusts to this news, but it certainly makes for a more uncertain future than many of us would have liked.
Sellers are also likely to not be unhappy about this as they saw the cost of HIP production as an un-needed cost.
For us industry professionals, who now need to re-group, at least the production of EPCs is still mandaded, within 28 days of commencement of marketing the property.
Time will tell how the market adjusts to this news, but it certainly makes for a more uncertain future than many of us would have liked.
Monday 17 May 2010
coalition leaves housing market in the dark
A lot in the weekend press, now that the dust is settling on the 'new' government on what ipacts will affect the housing market. Two area are the main sticking points where clarification is urgently needed.
Capital Gains Tax - likely to rise to 40% in line with income tax. This will have a very bad, some say disasterous, effect on the private-sector rental market and to an extent on property supply. A major lift in CGT is bound to be considered adversly by professional Investment buyers. If tye are not 'churning' the smaller housing stock, then we could see a bigger shortage of first time buy property. It is likely that rentals may also increase in the private sector to cover the downside, meaning aspirant first time buyers, moving out of the rental sector will take longer to build deposits, also adding to the sluggishness in the market.
EPCs IN, HIPs OUT - Tory manifesto always stated this as the plan, and with no evidence of any appetite for consultation, this may be introduced rapidly as a quick win for the new government. In the meantime, are HIPs now voluntary? Clarity is needed NOW to ensure the market continues to work correctly.
Capital Gains Tax - likely to rise to 40% in line with income tax. This will have a very bad, some say disasterous, effect on the private-sector rental market and to an extent on property supply. A major lift in CGT is bound to be considered adversly by professional Investment buyers. If tye are not 'churning' the smaller housing stock, then we could see a bigger shortage of first time buy property. It is likely that rentals may also increase in the private sector to cover the downside, meaning aspirant first time buyers, moving out of the rental sector will take longer to build deposits, also adding to the sluggishness in the market.
EPCs IN, HIPs OUT - Tory manifesto always stated this as the plan, and with no evidence of any appetite for consultation, this may be introduced rapidly as a quick win for the new government. In the meantime, are HIPs now voluntary? Clarity is needed NOW to ensure the market continues to work correctly.
Friday 14 May 2010
EPCs can work
I know I have been over some of this material in earlier postings in this blog, but it is a continuing surprise, the apathy with which the energy reports are generally regarded.
As a practicing energy assessor this is frustrating and occasionally demoralising that all the useful information in the Energy Performance Certificate is being missed.
So what does the EPC do? It gives an assessment of the health of a property, both in terms of current energy usage and in terms of carbon impact. It also makes a series of recommendations on how the energy efficiency of the house can be improved.
As a house seller this may give you a couple of quick wins and you can always re-do the EPC after the changes have been made.
As a house buyer or tenant, you can see areas where attention is needed and factor this into your mathematics when buying the house.
All the reports conform to the same methodology, so it also allows for the like by like comparatives between two properties - you can tell if one house you are considering buying or renting is better than another.
Of course the state of the loft insulation is never at the top of normal wish lists for house buyers, where location, size of garden, no of bedrooms etc. are all more critical, but at least look at the report. The government has made them mandatory for a reason. They are trying to drive up awareness of energy usage in the housing market. The report is there, it does contain some useful information, so find that ten minutes and have a read, you'd be surprised how useful it might actually be.
As a practicing energy assessor this is frustrating and occasionally demoralising that all the useful information in the Energy Performance Certificate is being missed.
So what does the EPC do? It gives an assessment of the health of a property, both in terms of current energy usage and in terms of carbon impact. It also makes a series of recommendations on how the energy efficiency of the house can be improved.
As a house seller this may give you a couple of quick wins and you can always re-do the EPC after the changes have been made.
As a house buyer or tenant, you can see areas where attention is needed and factor this into your mathematics when buying the house.
All the reports conform to the same methodology, so it also allows for the like by like comparatives between two properties - you can tell if one house you are considering buying or renting is better than another.
Of course the state of the loft insulation is never at the top of normal wish lists for house buyers, where location, size of garden, no of bedrooms etc. are all more critical, but at least look at the report. The government has made them mandatory for a reason. They are trying to drive up awareness of energy usage in the housing market. The report is there, it does contain some useful information, so find that ten minutes and have a read, you'd be surprised how useful it might actually be.
Monday 10 May 2010
Are HIPs History?
According to pre-election positioning, the Conservatives have pledged to remove HIPs from the property transaction. So as they look likely (but not certain) to form the next government as a minority or as a coalition have HIPs had their day?
From the point of view of the practicing Energy Assessor, I hope so (although part of me does actually like what the HIP does, more on that later).
So why would I be happy to see the end of HIPs - it is basically reverting each element of the housing transaction to the experts or professionals qualified to do the job.
Searches and conveyancing would then be pretty much handled by solicitors, or legal practices. They have always done the conveyancing historically, so this is a return to a previous status quo.
The Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) - the new kid on the block, is wrapped up in all the good green and carbon issues and is heavily backed by Brussells - so it is here to stay. As these can only be produced by a qualified energy assessor, it is another segment of the property transaction.
Inspections and valuations (which were never mandatorily in the HIP anyway) can be returned to the previous status quo and done by property surveyors.
BUT, by returning these constituent parts to the various professional bodies, the internet HIP vendors have no place to go - if there is no demand for the HIP, their services should wither with it.
So what will I miss about the HIP? The one element not covered by the above is the Property Information questionnaire (PIQ), that asks most of the right questions and puts information into the open well before the survey would normally be done - therefore saving time and effort AND possibly money. A standardised format means the 'tricky' questions cannot be avoided and buyer / seller go into the transaction with a degree more information than has been done in the past. Here there is a natural role for the Estate Agent to play. they know the area and know how certain outcomes affect local prices - let them take ownership of provision of the PIQ.
So there you have it - if HIPs die off I will be happy. It should allow small practicioners like me to re-establish relationships with local agents and keep the internet panels well out of things.
Of course, first we need a new government.....
From the point of view of the practicing Energy Assessor, I hope so (although part of me does actually like what the HIP does, more on that later).
So why would I be happy to see the end of HIPs - it is basically reverting each element of the housing transaction to the experts or professionals qualified to do the job.
Searches and conveyancing would then be pretty much handled by solicitors, or legal practices. They have always done the conveyancing historically, so this is a return to a previous status quo.
The Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) - the new kid on the block, is wrapped up in all the good green and carbon issues and is heavily backed by Brussells - so it is here to stay. As these can only be produced by a qualified energy assessor, it is another segment of the property transaction.
Inspections and valuations (which were never mandatorily in the HIP anyway) can be returned to the previous status quo and done by property surveyors.
BUT, by returning these constituent parts to the various professional bodies, the internet HIP vendors have no place to go - if there is no demand for the HIP, their services should wither with it.
So what will I miss about the HIP? The one element not covered by the above is the Property Information questionnaire (PIQ), that asks most of the right questions and puts information into the open well before the survey would normally be done - therefore saving time and effort AND possibly money. A standardised format means the 'tricky' questions cannot be avoided and buyer / seller go into the transaction with a degree more information than has been done in the past. Here there is a natural role for the Estate Agent to play. they know the area and know how certain outcomes affect local prices - let them take ownership of provision of the PIQ.
So there you have it - if HIPs die off I will be happy. It should allow small practicioners like me to re-establish relationships with local agents and keep the internet panels well out of things.
Of course, first we need a new government.....
Thursday 6 May 2010
Make money from self generation
Changes since 1st April (no it's not an April fools message!) means that it is now potentially more attractive for people to generate their own power.
why? because, in line with practice elsewhere in Europe, UK now awards feed-in tariffs (FITs) to self power generators - basically you get paid a tax free, index linked incentive for generating electricity for your own home and reducing your load on the national grid.
So is ther new scheme financially attractive? Estimates suggest, as an example, if you install a 10ft x 10ft grid of photovoltaics, it will cost you upwards of £10k. You could earn from FIts about £900, plus the savings you make on your electricity bills. In simple terms this puts payback in the 10 - 15 year range.
Property sector experts advise that such installations have negligible impact on house price, so no recovery option is likely when the house is sold by increased pricing, although it is likely to be, increasingly a nice to have - similar to where central heating was maybe 25+ years ago - so could facilitate a sale, even if it didn't increase the value.
So is it worthwhile? In purely financial terms, with a payback of >10 years, thats a judgement call you have to make. the main motivation is more likely to be a passion for green or carbon neutral issues, rather than financial and if that is your motivation, then the FIts will certainly sweeten the burden of your beliefs.
Finally a couple of practicalities to bear in mind. In most cases installation of green power doesn't require planning permission, but always check with your local authority to make sure. Secondly, to qualify for the FITs, the installation must be made by a registered installer - so competent DIY won't neccessarily deliver the benefits.
why? because, in line with practice elsewhere in Europe, UK now awards feed-in tariffs (FITs) to self power generators - basically you get paid a tax free, index linked incentive for generating electricity for your own home and reducing your load on the national grid.
So is ther new scheme financially attractive? Estimates suggest, as an example, if you install a 10ft x 10ft grid of photovoltaics, it will cost you upwards of £10k. You could earn from FIts about £900, plus the savings you make on your electricity bills. In simple terms this puts payback in the 10 - 15 year range.
Property sector experts advise that such installations have negligible impact on house price, so no recovery option is likely when the house is sold by increased pricing, although it is likely to be, increasingly a nice to have - similar to where central heating was maybe 25+ years ago - so could facilitate a sale, even if it didn't increase the value.
So is it worthwhile? In purely financial terms, with a payback of >10 years, thats a judgement call you have to make. the main motivation is more likely to be a passion for green or carbon neutral issues, rather than financial and if that is your motivation, then the FIts will certainly sweeten the burden of your beliefs.
Finally a couple of practicalities to bear in mind. In most cases installation of green power doesn't require planning permission, but always check with your local authority to make sure. Secondly, to qualify for the FITs, the installation must be made by a registered installer - so competent DIY won't neccessarily deliver the benefits.
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