The scale of change required to decarbonise UK homes is hiding in plain sight – Taylor

So when we talk about the challenge to upgrade 18 million homes over the next decade, that number may not have the impact it deserves. But if we break it down into the 7,000 homes per working day that require retrofitting, every year for the next 10 years, it might be the smaller numbers that have the biggest impact. 

A monumental opportunity is coming, we just need to be ready 

Further policy and intervention is necessary, along with an enormous amount of growth and training in the supply chain needed to bring the government’s Warm Homes Plan to life.

The opportunity presented by the amount of work involved makes it an exciting time to be in the sector and I’m looking forward to seeing it come to life.

I recently spoke at the Green Mortgage Summit, hosted by Mortgage Solutions, about our role as a lender in this process and how we need to work together with the industry and our intermediary partners to support homeowners and landlords alike.

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Rightmove estimates that the cost to retrofit all the homes required to achieve an energy-efficiency rating of C to be close to £200bn. Which, admittedly, is a big number that has a significant impact.

Whilst some of this cost may be met by central government funding, local authorities, energy firm obligations, and personal savings, I imagine a large chunk will be funded through borrowing.

Even if we use a super-conservative estimate and say only 10% requires borrowing, that is still a £20bn bill across thousands of properties around the UK, with owners who will need independent advice and support to make sure they are making the right financial decisions for them.

Landlords look set to be the first test of readiness 

The Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards (MEES) legislation is expected soon, following the current government consultation on the final legislation details.

When this legislation lands, it will be the first test of our readiness. Around three million properties in the private rented sector (PRS) require upgrading, and it is looking likely it will be over a short space of time.

Therefore, the need to be ready couldn’t be more important. The firms that embrace this challenge and act now will be the winners. Many of your buy-to-let (BTL) clients will need a plan of action to make sure they are compliant with MEES, and many are likely to require funding to achieve those plans.

So the question we need to be asking ourselves as lenders, intermediaries or property owners ourselves is: “If legislation lands this year, are we ready?”