Generally speaking, the new house will have a higher EPC rating than the old house, but this is not absolute.

　　For tenants, it is necessary to know the EPC rating of the house before deciding to rent it. Because this directly affects whether you need to bear more or less energy costs after living in it.

　　The energy cost mentioned here refers to gas and electricity. If you rent a house with a low EPC rating, the warm-keeping effect in winter will usually be poor (that is, it will be cold), so it will naturally take more heating to warm the house.

　　Looking back at the new government regulations, which prohibit landlords from renting houses with EPC rating lower than "E", it naturally means that the "F" and "G" behind it are unqualified.

　　But even if the new regulations are not on the road, Lisa also suggested that the powder should naturally not rent a house with a low EPC rating. Generally speaking, it’s best to choose a house with an EPC rating of "C" or above (even if the government limits it to "E").

　　Another point that needs to be reminded here is: as far as the landlord is concerned, whether you want to rent or sell your house later, you need to conduct an EPC evaluation of the property.

　　EPC not only points out the energy utilization degree and energy cost of the house, but also gives suggestions for improvement (how to save energy and energy cost more).

　　The effective date of an EPC evaluation is 10 years, which means that when your original EPC expires, you need to reapply for a valid EPC.

　　And if landlords want to rent or even sell their own property, but do not apply for EPC, they will face a fine of 200 pounds (residential property) from the government.

　　How can landlords improve the "energy saving score" of rented houses?

　　Landlords can improve EPC rating by improving (installing) related equipment, such as:

　　1. Thermostat boiler

　　2. Thermostat room heater

　　3. External wall insulation system.

　　4. Insulation duct (Duct insulation)

　　5. Roof insulation

　　6. Air source heat pump

　　7. Heating ventilation and air conditioning control (heating ventilation and air conditioning control)

　　8. Hot water taps-efficient

　　9. Install the Secondary glazing.

　　10. Gas condensed boiler (Gas fired condensing boiler)

　　11. Underground floor heating

　　12. windproof (Draught proofing)

　　13. Air cooling (Chiller)

　　14. Water source heat pump

　　It is particularly important to note that if landlords know that the EPC rating of their rented houses is lower than "E", they should take actions to improve it now, instead of waiting until the new regulations come into effect, otherwise they may face fines.

　　Tenants should learn to protect their rights and interests!

　　In addition to the EPC rating mentioned above, Lisa here would like to remind all the shakers that the rented house must meet HHSRS (Health and Safety Standards for Rented Homes).

　　That is to say, landlords must ensure that the property they rent is "not harmful to the physical and mental health or safety of tenants". If it will cause harm, it is not up to standard.

　　And what is the standard of not causing harm? This can be divided into two categories of "harm" factors:

　　1. Affect the "health" of the tenant, such as the following:

　　1) Damp and moldy

　　2) excessive cold

　　3) Too crowded (too many people live)

　　4) Rat pests

　　2. Affect the "safety" of tenants, such as the following:

　　1) Faulty or problematic gas device

　　2) There is fire danger, and there is no fire prevention and fire alarm device.

　　3) Dangerous lines

　　4) The house is not safe against theft, like the door lock is broken.

　　5) structural problems of the house, or poor quality such as stairs and floors (for example, the collapse of stairs will make people inconvenient to walk or even easy to fall)

　　6) holes in the roof, water leakage, etc.

　　Suppose the house you rent is not up to standard, which may cause harm to you. What should you do?

　　First of all, you should inform your landlord immediately and ask them to fix the problem.

　　2. Then, the landlord should give a reply as soon as possible (the law requires the landlord to respond to the tenant within 14 days) and inform the tenant of his reasonable plan for the repair work (such as the time required and when someone will repair it …).

　　At this time, the landlord should not forget that it is necessary to inform the tenant in advance (at least 24 hours ago, but the earlier the better) when he or the relevant workers will come to the rented house for repair work.

　　In addition to respecting the tenant, there is another reason why it is necessary to inform in advance: according to the law, the tenant has the right to enjoy the house rented by him or her quietly, so it can constitute "harassment" for the landlord to enter the rented house without the tenant’s consent.

　　Therefore, even if it is necessary to do repair work, the landlord can’t enter the rental house without notice. In addition, the landlord can only appear in a "reasonable" time.

　　This means that it is totally unreasonable for the landlord to say that he will come to check the equipment of the house and make repairs in the middle of the night, and the tenant can refuse.

　　3. If the landlord has been informed about the repair of the rented house, but the landlord has refused to improve it, then the tenant can "notify the local government".

　　Sha Fen can find out what local government they belong to through the following website: https://www.gov.uk/find-local-council.

　　After informing the local government, they will send someone to the rental house for evaluation.

　　If the evaluation finds that the house does not meet the standard and may cause harm to the health or safety of the tenants, they will take action against the landlord and ask him to improve it.

　　At this time, the landlord usually does not dare to cheat again, and should be obedient. Otherwise, the landlord may be fined or even prosecuted.

　　Another thing that needs to be reminded is that the landlords mentioned above need to be responsible for the repairs, and the tenants do not need to pay for the repairs. So if the landlord comes back to ask you for money, it is illegal.

　　In addition, if the landlord is unwilling to improve these "hazards" in the house, you can also tell them and ask for compensation.

　　Regarding the level of compensation, Lisa Know once wrote an article "500,000 welfare houses are not up to standard, and the government needs to pay compensation according to law", which has a detailed explanation. Interested parties can check it out by themselves.

　　Finally, if you have more questions about renting and selling houses in the UK, you are welcome to contact Lisa Law Firm and Lisa Accounting Firm directly, whether you are a tenant or a landlord.

　　Sweep it, Lisa knows it!

　　(The copyright of this article belongs to Lisa Law Firm. Welcome to forward it. However, any commercial reprinting or quoting directly or indirectly for the purpose of profit must be directly authorized by the company, otherwise the company will strictly investigate all responsibilities.

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