The energy efficiency of private rented stock is only slowly improving, reflecting a slowdown in the UK’s green energy push by successive UK governments.
In the private rented sector, there was only a 3% year-on-year increase in homes with an EPC rating of at least C, Rightmove analysis shows.
For much of the early 2020s it was thought privately rented homes would need a C rating for new tenancies by 2025 and for existing tenancies by 2028, before then-Prime Minister Rishi Sunak scrapped the plan.
Now under Labour, the deadline has been pushed to 2028 for new tenancies and 2030 for existing tenancies.
In terms of positive green steps, the Boiler Upgrade Scheme (BUS) in England & Wales offers grants of up to £7,500 for air/ground source heat pumps, or £2,500 for air-to-air/heat batteries.
Colleen Babcock, property expert at Rightmove, said: “Policy ambition hasn’t translated into real-world acceleration.
“We might have expected green improvements to speed up in the rental sector following policy pushes, but the data shows progress over the past five years has been slower than the previous five.
“For landlords, the challenge is balancing compliance with cost and potential value appreciation, and for renters, it’s about finding homes that deliver real savings.
“Energy efficiency isn’t just good for the planet, it’s good for the pocket too, and making it easier to achieve will be key to unlocking faster change.”
The only current requirement is for rental homes to have a minimum EPC of E.
Homes for sale with EPC A ratings have £571 in average annual energy bills versus £6,368 for an EPC G rated home.
Green terms are at least being used as selling points, as mentions of heat pumps in property listings on Rightmove are up 46% and solar panels are up 37% year-on-year.
While improvements have been slow, rental sector stock still more energy efficient than resale stock.