What is a Home Energy Improvement Plan (also known as a Whole House Retrofit)?
Retrofitting involves making improvements to a property in order to make it more energy efficient.
A Whole House Retrofit is carried out by accredited, qualified retrofit professionals. A Retrofit Assessor will carry out a survey evaluating the condition of a property, how it’s constructed and how it uses energy based on current needs.
A Retrofit Coordinator will then use the results from this survey to produce a Whole House Improvement Plan. The plan will not only contain recommended measures that will reduce a property’s carbon emissions and energy use, the report will organise the recommendations into phases, together with estimated costs and expected energy savings. The phases allow you to decide which measure you want to invest in first, and consider the effect that initial measures may have on the property.
For example; a blocked-off chimney will reduce heat loss but may also increase humidity levels that will need additional ventilation. A Whole House Retrofit will take all measures into consideration, providing you with a reliable, efficient pathway to an energy-efficient property.
How does an Energy Improvement Plan/Whole House Retrofit really benefit me?
A Home Energy Improvement Plan benefits homeowners by creating a healthy, energy-efficient, well-ventilated home that’s in good condition and emits less carbon dioxide.
Annual energy bills are likely to noticeably decrease due to the improvements you make to a property. In a more energy-efficient home, you’ll use less energy and therefore reduce cost.
Santander produced a report ‘Buying into the Green Homes Revolution’ and its study found that ‘energy efficiency is now more sought after than traditional features like a garden or off-street parking’, with buyers putting ‘a 9.4 per cent premium’ on homes that have already been retrofitted. This is known as the Green Homes Premium and is even more valuable in the South East, East of England, West Midlands, Yorkshire and the Humber, and the South West.*
A retrofit may prove even more advantageous if future lending rates favour better EPC ratings.
*Data gained from The Lloyds Banking Group article “What’s Stopping The Green Housing Revolution?” and Santander’s “Buying into the Green Homes Revolution Report.
Is an Energy Improvement Plan/Whole House Retrofit expensive?
Making large, fundamental changes to a property may not seem like a budget-friendly option but government funding is available that you may be eligible for.
If your home has an EPC rating between D and G and is in Council Tax Band A-D, you may be eligible for help with the cost of insulation— regardless of your income — via The Great British Insulation Scheme (GBIS).
Through the Boiler Upgrade Scheme (BUS), you could get a grant to cover part of the cost of replacing fossil fuel heating systems such as oil, gas, electric or LPG with a heat pump or biomass boiler.
If your household income is low, then you may be eligible for funding towards the cost of insulation, heating and renewable technologies under The Energy Company Obligation (ECO).