Are you looking to sell your apartment or house? But do you have all the essential documents to quickly finalize this transaction?
The Energy Performance Certificate of a Building, or EPC, certifies the insulation level of your home and the expected energy consumption based on your installations. While a good rating is a real asset for a quick sale, a poor one can make you miss opportunities. Hermanns Real Estate explains how to make the EPC a real asset when selling your property!
What is the EPC Certificate?
The EPC certificate represents an energy identity card for your home. It allows for easy comparison of buildings to identify those with the best performance under specific usage conditions and climate.
The EPC certificate must be obtained before the property is put up for sale and transmitted to potential buyers before the signing of the deed of sale.
How are a Building’s Energy Performances Evaluated?
The energy performance of a property is evaluated by a calculation method that takes into account:
- The thermal insulation of the building envelope: the insulation of walls, slabs, and roof, as well as the performance of joinery (doors, French windows, and windows).
- The technical performance of the building: heating, the domestic hot water installation, and any ventilation and/or air conditioning system.
Energy performance is estimated per unit, meaning it concerns a distinct thermal envelope, such as a single-family house or an apartment.
The key indicators included in the EPC are:
- The energy class
- Total and specific energy consumption
- The use of renewable energies
- CO2 emissions
For each existing building, the EPC certifier issues improvement recommendations. To facilitate the sale of a property, it is advisable to carry out at least some of the proposed optimizations and to update the certificate to benefit from them.
The Energy Performance of Buildings in the Brussels Region
The EPC classification ranges from “A” for a very energy-efficient building to “G” for a very energy-intensive building. In Brussels, many properties for sale have a poor EPC. In other words, many apartments and houses available on the market display an energy class between “F” and “G”.
Prospective buyers are often reluctant to settle in such properties because they know they will quickly need to invest several thousand euros to improve this result and obtain a comfortable and energy-efficient home. With the almost constant rise in fuel prices, reducing consumption becomes a financial imperative for most households who wish to keep their energy bills under control.
By offering a property with an EPC class of “A”, “B”, “C”, or even “D”, you clearly stand out from the available offerings. As soon as your property is put up for sale, if the acquisition price remains consistent with the market, you will more easily receive purchase offers and finalize the sale more quickly.
Why Can a Poor EPC Really Cause a Sale to Fail?
A less Favorable Loan Rate
Since January 2021, in accordance with the directives of the European Central Bank (ECB) and its policy in favor of combating global warming, the National Bank of Belgium (NBB) requires commercial banks to ask anyone wishing to obtain a mortgage loan to submit the EPC certificate of the property they wish to acquire.
Because a bank grants a mortgage loan based on a long-term property value assessment and because poor energy performance devalues a property, buyers of an energy-intensive property could therefore benefit from a less favorable loan rate.
Possible Taxation of Properties with a Poor EPC
The EPC certificate indicates the amount of CO2 emitted by the building. For now, no Belgian region taxes poor EPCs, but the subject is under discussion and the situation could soon evolve… An additional motivation for prospective buyers to direct their searches towards more energy-efficient properties.
Benefit from Regional Aid
Do you wish to optimize your property to finalize the sale more quickly but fear the costs these renovations may incur? Even if carrying out insulation work can sometimes seem expensive, numerous aids and grants are offered by the Brussels-Capital Region, the Walloon Region, and the Flemish Region. Often advantageous, these regional grants may allow you to more calmly consider the necessary work to make your EPC a real asset!
As amounts and conditions for granting may vary, inquire according to your needs and the location of your property. Here are some useful links to assist you in your endeavors:
The EPC, yes. The electrical certificate too!
Do you wish to maximize your chances to sell your property as quickly as possible? In addition to optimizing your EPC, we also advise you to obtain electrical certification.
In Belgium, a non-compliant electrical system must be brought into compliance within a maximum of 18 months after purchase. Just like an efficient EPC, a compliant electrical installation will therefore reassure potential buyers and confirm their choice. Indeed, a saving on works that can sometimes reach €7,500 will for many be an advantage not to be overlooked…
In conclusion, if you are considering selling your property, do not forget to order your energy audits to obtain the EPC and the electrical certification for your building. Finally, if you already have an EPC certificate but have since carried out insulation work, we advise you to have it updated to benefit from a more marketable energy classification.
Psst… And if you choose Hermanns Real Estate to handle the sale of your property, we offer you the EPC certification for your property! Do you already have the Energy Performance Certificate for your Building? No need to be jealous, we systematically deduct the value of the EPC audit from our commission.
More information? Contact us!
