View Point: Energy Performance Certificates

Oct 17 2007 by Chris Rodgers, Liverpool Daily Post

WITH £3bn of investment committed to the city, Liverpool’s rental and sale prices are at an all-time high. But the vast majority of commercial building owners still don’t understand the enormity of change that commercial Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs) will bring.

From next April 1 all commercial properties over 5,500sqft in England and Wales will need an EPC.

Residential EPCs have received consid-erable press as the buying process undergoes a radical change and now, six months before commercial EPCs are rolled out, landlords need to take heed.

For owners of modern buildings the issues are less onerous as sus-tainable building design and energy perfor-mance will have been included in every aspect of the build.Š But for the city’s older and often smaller buildings, already struggling to compete with the increasing number of Grade A purpose-built offices, it poses a real issue.

Some commentators have warned of insufficient numbers of commercial energy assessors and how this could cause a dramatic market slowdown.

In reality the situation is not so dire. As with residential EPCs it was thought that assessors were in short supply but now, three months into their introduction and supply has radically outstripped demand. There’s nothing to suggest that the same won’t apply for the commercial market too.

The 2007 regulations require the seller or landlord to provide an EPC for the property to prospective buyers or tenants. The main feature is the asset rating, which indicates the energy performance of the building.

If your company takes its environmental policy seriously, it makes sense to know your energy rating.

Chris Rodgers, of national energy assessor and valuation organisation, Christopher Rodgers (Home & Energy)