Minister ‘sympathetic’ to landlord calls on energy efficiency
Landlords’ concerns over delays to energy efficiency plans have been laid before Government minister Lord Callanan.
NRLA Chief Executive Ben Beadle had a private meeting with the Minister for Energy Efficiency to express landlords’ frustration at a lack of movement, following a consultation on plans to introduce new minimum Energy Performance Certificate ratings more than two years ago.
Under the plans the Government proposed a minimum rating of C for privately rented homes, with the new rules to be implemented in 2025 for new tenancies and 2028 for all others.
The NRLA has been arguing for some time that these deadlines are now completely unworkable, saying landlords have been left in limbo, knowing that change is on the cards, yet left in the dark as to what they might look like.
It has also been campaigning for a rethink over proposals that would cap improvement works at £10,000 per property, saying such bills could be ruinous, particularly for smaller landlords.
NRLA Chief Executive Ben Beadle said: “Landlords are not the ‘fat cats’ the media would make us out to be, with almost 70% basic rate taxpayers.
“However £10,000 also has a different value depending where in the country you and your portfolio are based.
“If you have a property in central London and are charging market rent, £10,000 is still a lot of money. However if you are in somewhere like the North East, where property values and rents are significantly lower, it’s a staggering amount.
“To support landlords in areas of low property values, we have asked for some kind of tapering to any cap that’s introduced to reflect that, an idea the Minister appeared to be receptive to.
“Reflecting comments made to me by Housing Secretary Michael Gove, he confirmed there is cross departmental work going on to come up with a way forward.”
“He also reassured me the Government is aware there is an impact on landlords caused by the delays to the announcement, and understands the need for clarity – reiterating that there will be movement on the consultation response before Christmas.”
What does the NRLA want?
In addition to its call for a rethink on timeframes and a tapering cap based on property values, the NRLA wants:
- A definitive timetable for publication of the consultation response and necessary legislation and how it will align with work by the Department for Levelling Up Housing and Community (DHCLG) on developing a decent homes standard for the sector.
- A move to take into account energy improvement works already carried out by landlords when it comes to implementing the price cap.
For more information on our calls on energy efficiency click here.
