How energy-efficient is your home? The following report has been compiled by cost-effective secondary glazing suppliers The Plastic People and could see you finding many ways to make your property greener — saving money in the process.

Key insights from English Housing Survey: Energy Efficiency of English Housing

The English Housing Survey is a nationwide survey which looks at people’s housing circumstances and the condition and energy efficiency of housing in England.

Here’s an analysis of the key findings of the most recent English Housing Survey: Energy Efficiency of English Housing (using statistics gathered in 2012):

  • The following is the mean SAP (standing for Standard Assessment Procedure) rating for all dwellings in England, whereby a rating of 1 on a scale of 1-100 means poor energy efficiency (and thus high costs) and a rating of 100 is a completely energy-efficient dwelling (and zero net energy costs per year as a result):
Type of dwelling Sample size Mean SAP
Small terraced 1,323 58.6
Medium/large terraced 2,356 58.8
Semi-detached 2,985 56.9
Detached 1,506 55.9
Bungalow 1,189 54.6
Converted flat 476 53.7
Purpose-built, low-rise flat 2,550 66.7
Purpose-built, high-rise flat 378 68.0

 

Age of dwelling Sample size Mean SAP
Pre 1919 2,109 50.3
1919-44 1,936 54.7
1945-64 3,044 58.8
1965-80 2,904 60.1
1981-90 1,096 62.5
Post 1990 1,674 69.3

 

  • The following is the mean SAP rating for all dwellings in England, when certain heating and insulation characteristics are taken into account:
Heating & insulation characteristic Sample size Mean SAP
Central heating 11,482 59.2
Storage heating 972 59.0
Fixed room heating 309 33.9
Standard boiler (i.e. floor or wall variety) 2,683 54.2
Back boiler (i.e. to fire or stove) 584 49.4
Combination heater 2,057 57.7
Condensing heater 1,377 63.0
Condensing-combination heater 4,397 63.4
Gas-fired system 10,672 59.6
Oil-fired system 367 49.4
Solid fuel-fired system 91 31.5
Electrical system 1,246 52.9
No loft insulation 231 40.4
Loft insulation of less than 100mm 1,409 54.0
Loft insulation of between 100 and 150mm 2,220 56.5
Loft insulation of 150mm or more 5,712 60.1
Cavity insulated walls 5,415 63.7
Post-1990 walls with no CWI evidence 636 66.0
Cavity uninsulated walls 2,965 56.0

Key recommendations from the Energy Performance Certificate

All would-be buyers or tenants will receive an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC). This is a guide which illustrates how efficiently a home uses energy and the cost of running it.

They are also recommendations found on each EPC which details how to make a property more energy efficient. Advice includes:

  • Increasing loft insulation to 270mm. While the indicative cost may be between £100 and £350, the typical savings per year can be up to £47 once installed.
  • Fitting cavity wall insulation around the home. While the indicative cost may be between £500 and £1,500, the typical savings per year can be up to £179 once installed.
  • Draught proof your home. While the indicative cost may be between £80 and £120, the typical savings per year can be up to £29 once the improvement has been made.
  • Use low energy lighting units for all fixed outlets around a home. While this can typically cost £50, the typical savings per year can work out at up to £43.
  • Replace the home’s current boiler with a new condensing boiler. While the indicative cost may be between £2,200 and £3,000, the typical savings per year can be up to £339 once the replacement has been made.

Key insights from Sustainable Homes’ Touching The Voids report

In the summer of 2016, UK-GBC member Sustainable Homes released its Touching The Voids report. The study focused on the potential for more energy-efficient homes to be able to provide cost savings and increased income in unexpected areas like rent arrears and reduced voids, where properties lie empty.

Here’s the standout findings from the report:

  • As homes become more energy efficient, they become void for a shorter length of time. This statement is backed up from this analysis of more than 30,000 properties between June 2013 and June 2015:
SAP rating Average number of void days
34 and under 80.7
35-39 76.0
40-44 69.9
45-49 69.8
50-54 59.8
55-59 56.3
60-64 55.7
65-69 53.2
70-74 54.5
75-79 55.3
80-84 48.8
85 and above 31.2
  • Landlords whose housing stock had an average SAP of between 66 and 68 typically had a void operational cost of between £200 and £400 per home managed. In contrast, landlords whose housing stock had an average SAP of between 73 and 75 typically had a void operational cost of between £50 and £150 per home managed.

A look at an American homeowner’s perspective on the value of a green home report

What are our attitudes to energy-efficient homes like compared to our neighbours from across the Atlantic Ocean? The Homeowner’s Perspective: The Value of a Green Home report, which was put together in 2013 by GuildQuality, North America’s leading provider of customer satisfaction surveying for the building industry, aims to find out.

Here’s the key insights that can be taken from the study:

  • 94 per cent of respondents agreed that they would be likely to recommend a green home to either a friend or family member.
  • 70 per cent of respondents strongly agreed that they were satisfied with the green features of their home. A further 25 per cent went with agreed when posed with the same query.
  • 90 per cent of respondents gained satisfaction in knowing that they had done the right thing in purchasing a green home.
  • 77 per cent of respondents said that they like to tell other people about the green features of their home.
  • 39 per cent of respondents strongly agreed that owning a green home was important to them when they began their search for a new home. A further 31 per cent went with agreed when posed with the same query.
  • 71 per cent of respondents believed that green homes are of a higher quality overall.
  • 86 per cent of respondents believed that green homes were subjected to lower utility bills than non-green home.
  • 92 per cent of respondents believed that green homes maintained more consistent temperatures than non-green homes.