Energy efficiency is important for house buyers

When you're looking at buying a new home, there will no doubt be a long list of desirable requirements that you'd like from the property and its location.

Quite often, it'll be essential that the local amenities pass muster because of your lifestyle. Or perhaps it's the transport links because of your work commitments. Or maybe it's of greater importance to be more rural with wider space to get away from the clamour of town life.

There are so many things to consider - and also several to discuss in deciding what you're prepared to compromise on from that list.

But, with increasing evidence to underpin it, a report by Property Wire based on data and analysis from property portal Share to Buy, more buyers are focusing on the energy efficiency of the property they want to buy as one of the top priorities.

The importance of how efficient a home is with the energy it uses is driven from two principal sources: the global warming crisis and the elevated cost of fuel and how that personally impacts the ongoing cost-of-living crisis.

There is a sense of conscience playing into decisions about domestic living arrangements as more and more people try to understand how their habits are having an input to the climate change problems - from the food we eat through the types of material we use in what we buy and wear to the fuel we consume for travel and to heat our homes and the water we use for drinking and hygiene purposes.

While it's true that one individual making a considerable change in what they consume will have minimal impact on the global picture, it is also the case that the more people who accept a responsibility and make that change, the bigger the positive impact will be.

At the same time, as the Ukraine war stands on the threshold of its fourth year, along with other geopolitical issues such as the Houthi attacks in the Red Sea and the war in the Middle East, costs are being impacted adversely, and none more so than the price of fuel.

Although the UK Government has put measures in place to help those worst affected, the combined pressures of climate change solutions and the cost-of-living crisis has elevated the priority of energy efficiency up the house-moving requirements list.

Interestingly, a report in Estate Agent Today shows research by Shawbrook that indicates prospective buyers are turning away from period properties for exactly the same reason - with the prioritisation of sustainability and efficiency over style and features, it would appear that such properties are not as popular as they once were.

Back in July 2024, Homeward Legal published a piece on the importance of the energy performance certificate, and this is what plays into the decision-making process when looking at this aspect of a property that might become a prospective purchase.

Because of the very nature of insulation, it is usually hidden within walls, in the loft-space and under floorboards, while lagging of pipes and other parts of the heating system might not be easily accessible for inspection and analysis. 

The choice of heating, such as gas-fired boiler, oil central heating, heat pumps, and so on, will also be an important consideration, as would how effective the external (and some internal) doors and windows are at keeping heat in, so that the thermostat can be effectively turned down a few notches.

When you're buying a property, this information should be readily to hand as part of the estate agent particulars. If they are not present, you are quite within your rights to ask for them, and this is also where your conveyancing solicitor will be able to facilitate the process.

You can also ask your Chartered Surveyor to check for specifics that might be of concern to you. From all the information obtained from the estate agent, the conveyancer and surveyor, you should have sufficient detail to make an informed decision about the state of the property's energy efficiency.

And, more importantly, whether any issues that are highlighted about the efficiency of the property is enough to back out of registering your interest and making an offer.

What this also tells a prospective seller is that the importance of energy efficiency is increasing for buyers, so it's worth getting an up-to-date energy efficiency rating for the property and, where there are obvious shortfalls, to factor that into the asking price, perhaps even to take remedial action to make the property even more attractive to buyers.

Moving house is an expensive business. So, you'll be wanting to control your costs and not waste money. And that includes not paying over the odds for the conveyancing service, combined with an assurance that you'll get the best quality of conveyancing service for the best value, which means you can then focus on the other expenses in the move without worrying about the legal side of things.

That's where Homeward Legal can really help with affordable but quality conveyancing services! They will start work on your planned purchase and/or sale as soon as you agree to the quotation and appoint them to represent you, and will work hard to complete the process in as short a time as possible. 

Homeward Legal will also provide a quote that will not change - what you are quoted is what you pay for standard conveyancing process.

There are some unforeseen items that might arise during the purchase and/or sale, but the solicitor discusses these and their cost as they come up. 

In addition, to protect the homebuyer further, Homeward Legal operates a ‘no completion, no fee' promise, which ensures that, should the purchase or sale not go through as planned to completion status, no payment is required.

Call  to get your conveyancing quote started, or to discuss your concerns with your plans to move.

Or you can get a quick quote, using Homeward Legal's easy-to-use quote generator.