Landlord rules for EPS help

[LandlordRules]

www.whatmortgage.co.uk/buy-to-let-4/how-buy-to-let-landlords-can-prepare-for-the-2025-epc-deadline/#:~:text=By%202025%2C%20it%20is%20anticipated,apply%20to%20all%20existing%20tenancies.

I'm aware that in two years time, the rules change for landlords, which will require the EPC rating to be C or above.

My property is over 100 years old and has cavity wall insulation, a new roof, double glazing except for one back door, a Combi boiler and is still a rating D. The EPC states it can only improve to the potential of a higher rating D, to the tune of £10,000 work (suspension flooring and the likes), but that still isn't enough to meet the criteria the new rules, which state it should be C or above.

Does anyone know what I can do about this? Surely if it were possible to attain a C in this old building, then the Epc would have stated it is a D and has the potential to be a C or a B?

How's the government imposed an impossible task? The fines are 30,000 for non-compliance and I simply don't know what to do. Even if I paid the £10,000 which I don't have, I will only increase it to hirer D and still won't be a C.

Please don't get into the wise, and Wyatt falls of being a landlord, it happened, completely accidentally, and the housing market has crashed enough for me, not to be able to sell, accept our loss, which it sounds like I'm gonna have to do in two years. However, I would really like to be able to increase the Epc and have no idea how to do this or even if it would be possible when I have no spare money.

Actually, I'm
Not sure it's definitely going ahead or just a proposal.

Either way, does anyone know?

You are best to join landlord sites like landlordzone etc.
Truth is.. nobody knows. The rental market is in such a dire state thanks to government interference that many tenants are being turfed out as swathes of landlords sell up.
Also remember that many older (and beautiful) properties simply were not build to be densely insulated.

Nobody knows, but I your she's I'd sell now. If the new regs do come in the market will be flooded eith EPC D homes, and with the economy fucked no one with money to buy them.

Completely agree with this. Lots of landlords are selling up for reasons such as these, and because of their experiences with dreadful tenants and the delays in the courts. I'm going through hell at the moment trying to recover my family home from terrible tenants. I wouldn't wish it on anyone, and if I weren't intending to move my family into it, I would absolutely sell up as it simply isn't worth it. It's taken years to get to the stage we are at and I'm not anticipating recovering possession before Christmas.

I had heard of people selling up, but because I was already complying with things like the energy efficiency, Electrical Safety, and gas safety, and have had new roof and cavity wall insulation et cetera, I thought I was compliant. This however, is a Bridge Too Far at the cost of £30,000 penalty if I don't comply. I don't know what the government is thinking of, but it certainly isn't anything that I can work my way round financially. The problem I've got is that I have locked myself into a 10 year mortgage with a massive penalty if I sell and the property market has dropped, which means that my mortgaged to the max property won't likely sell enough to even clear my debts. I simply don't know what I'm going to do, I suspect I will lose my home over this..

Can you let the property out on short term Air BnB type lets instead? I'm not sure if the new rules apply to holiday lets in the same way as long term lets.

Don't panic. We are all in the dark right now..nobody knows anything and that includes the government! One thing is for sure - they can't risk 1000s more families being evicted due to a below C rating. Some properties will never be able to reach this anyway unless the whole block is knocked down and rebuilt.

That is exactly the predicament I'm in: the whole building would need to be knocked down as it's way over 100 years old and can't be patched up. In its own right it's perfectly fine to live in, charming in fact - I loved it when I lived there myself.

I did think that if my lovely home is in this category there must be so many more in the same boat. What we are the government playing at? They've actually given dates for all of this and not much time (first landmark date is less than 2 years away).

All the Lettings agent and mortgage BTL articles are saying the same though: that it is going to happen. Can they all be that wrong?

I have looked into this before but it's the wrong area unfortunately, so it wouldn't cover the mortgage which is over £1k a month.

Have you looked at the high cost exemptions to see if they apply?

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/private-rented-sector-minimum-energy-efficiency-standard-exemptions/guidance-on-prs-exemptions-and-exemptions-register-evidence-requirements

I was aware there are exemptions but it seems to only be for properties rating EPC E or below. Mines a D. The report says that with £10,000 worth of upgrade. It's still only be in the D category, so it wouldn't make it compliant. I honestly don't know what else am I supposed to do?

Could you move back in to the house if needs be? Let go of wherever you live now and love in the unretnable house?

OP I honestly don't think it will happen in 2025. At the moment LL are leaving the market in droves. There are simply not enough rental properties in the country to home all those who want to rent. This government is absolutely useless at building social housing and they don't maintain a lot of the housing stock they have. The housing bill hasn't even had its second reading and party conferences are looming so not much time left in parliament available. I'd not be surprised if the EPC rating requirements went down to a D. Many older Victorian terrace houses can't make a C rating unless internal cavity walls, suspended floors have been filled and solar panels fitted on the roof. Internal cavity walls make the house smaller, and I was quoted the cost of £13,600. All to save the tenant less than £10 a month. At the same time privately owned homes can remain an E. It makes far more sense to move all houses up to a D rating and I suspect grants will be made available to push houses that can be pushed, up a notch. If all E and D rated properties owned by LL were put on the market and tenants had to leave where would the government put them. These are often larger 3 bedroom properties housing families with young children. I've got 10 btl properties. 5 are already C rating but 5 are D. 1 I can get cavity wall filling and it will then become a C. It's 1 point away from a C ATM. The other 4 all have boilers less than 4 years old, individual radiator valves, remote control of heating, full double glazing, good loft lagging, and energy efficient light bulbs. They can't have external cavity wall filling as single skins. They are not damp or mouldy they have both bathroom extractor fan and kitchen extractor fan. All ventilation blocks are regularly cleaned out, guttering cleaned out each year. They are in far far better condition than many housing association houses that are damp, because they have no extractor fans in the bathroom or kitchen. I'm not selling my D rated houses and if I did it would make 20 people homeless who have told me they are happy with the houses as they are.