Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs) are a legal requirement for selling, renting or building a property, and their importance to buyers is growing. Data from Rightmove shows buyer demand for homes with an A rating rose by 22% in July this year compared with the same month last year.
Colleen Babcock, property expert at Rightmove, said: “A home's energy efficiency can influence buyer demand, how quickly it sells, and ultimately the price a buyer is willing to pay.” She added that more energy-efficient homes are seeing stronger price performance, while lower-rated properties see smaller price growth.
The government has delayed its planned EPC reforms, which were initially due to launch in October 2026. The new framework, which will include four cost metrics instead of one, is now set to be rolled out in the second half of 2027.
Separately, landlords must ensure all private rental properties have an EPC rating of C or above by 2030 under the Minimum Energy Efficiency Standard. They will need to meet the C standard in the fabric performance metric, and also in either the heating systems or smart readiness metric.