Agency body Propertymark has written to the government asking for more clarity on the future of Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards (MEES) for commercial properties.
The letter, to Martin McCluskey MP, minister for energy consumers at the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero, came after the government’s Warm Homes Plan confirmed that private rentals in the residential sector need an EPC rating of C by 2030.
Commercial agents are currently in a ‘policy vacuum’, Propertymark said, despite longstanding expectations that commercial buildings could be required to meet an EPC rating of B by 2030.
Commercial agents are increasingly being asked to advise landlords and tenants on long-term investment decisions, lease structures, and asset management strategies without any certainty on future energy efficiency requirements.
This policy could cause uncertainty and discourage investment across the commercial sector, particularly on high streets and in town centres, as landlords may delay or withdraw funding for upgrades, refurbishment, and regeneration projects.
Also creating uncertainty is restrictions on upward-only rent reviews and changes to end-of-lease arrangements.
The trade body warned that the absence of detail on interim targets, exemptions, enforcement mechanisms, and financial support makes it impossible for commercial landlords and tenants to plan responsibly or invest with confidence.
Agents are already reporting growing concern from clients facing significant retrofit costs, uncertainty over who is responsible for improvements, and the risk of properties becoming unlettable if standards are introduced without sufficient lead-in time or support.
Propertymark requested meetings with ministers and officials to discuss the technical details of the Warm Homes Plan and to ensure the practical realities faced by agents managing both domestic and non-domestic property are fully understood.
In the residential sector Propertymark warned that landlords are being asked to deliver substantial and costly upgrades within a short timeframe, especially when it comes to complex or hard-to-treat properties.
Propertymark argued that a phased and pragmatic approach is needed to allow landlords to maintain the Decent Homes Standard, manage costs effectively, and contribute meaningfully to the UK government’s net zero ambitions without reducing rental supply.