We talk to aluplast’s Director of Sales & Marketing Ian Cocken about the impact energy efficiency has on a home’s value.
Halifax said that the average house price is now £1,000 shy of the record set in June 2022, while the Nationwide said that during August, UK house prices rose at their highest annual rate since December 2022.
This positive activity was fuelled in part by cuts to mortgage rates and the expectation that the Bank of England will cut interest rates at least once more in 2024.
In among these positive figures were further details that should boost the optimism of those working in the home improvement industry.
“The energy efficiency of homes is rising one again to the top of the agenda,” aluplast’s Director of Sales & Marketing Ian Cocken says. “Our industry has discussed at length about how homeowners are quick to upgrade windows and doors as energy prices rocket – which we saw after Russia invaded Ukraine – but little has been said about energy efficiency as a method to sell homes.”
According to the Nationwide, a more energy efficient property, rated A or B, is 2.8% higher in price when compared to a similar property rated D, the most commonly occurring rating.
“There is a noticeable discount for properties rated F or G – the lowest energy efficiency ratings,” Robert Gardner, chief economist for Nationwide, says. “Indeed, an F or G rated home is valued 4.2% lower than a similar D rated property.
“Our research suggests while energy efficiency impacts remain relatively modest, they have increased relative to pre-pandemic levels.”
For Cocken, the need to put energy efficiency at the centre of your business strategy is key.
“Energy efficiency isn’t something you can just tag on to the list of properties a window or door has,” he says. “A property’s energy efficiency is central to its desirability, and all improvements made to that property must follow that trend. But this cannot be done at the expense of other desirable features.
