According to Santander’s ‘Buying into the green homes revolution’ report, which surveyed 2,000 homeowners and 180 brokers, only six per cent of brokers are regularly asked about energy efficiency by clients, and only 58 per cent claim it has been mentioned by customers.
Of those that do get advice, only one in five brokers believe the customer is taking the information on board.
However, brokers are becoming increasingly aware of the challenge, with 70 per cent saying that they had become more aware of the importance of energy efficiency over the past year due to rising costs of living.
Around 61 per cent of brokers said they were up to date on current green products and upcoming regulatory changes, putting them in a good position to advise their customers.
More than three quarters of brokers, 77 per cent, are support of an increase in grants for households that cannot afford to make retrofitting improvements.
Around 70 per cent of brokers support tax incentives, like stamp duty discount on energy efficient homes.
Over half, 58 per cent, said that further education from the government to the public on these issues would encourage more action amongst homeowners.
Graham Sellar, head of business development and mortgages at Santander, said that 21 per cent of the UK’s carbon dioxide emissions come from housing, so the government and the housing industry need to work together on the “crucial challenge of retrofitting our homes”.
He said that this was especially important given the UK’s target to be net zero by 2050.
Sellar added: “Brokers will play an important role in the industry’s ability to rise to this challenge: from educating homeowners on the benefits of improved energy efficiency, to supporting them with funding their home’s retrofitting journey.
“As the costs of living pressures continue to hit many homeowners, a high energy efficient property can bring savings of up to 52 per cent on energy costs a year, so ensuring those looking to buy or remortgage understand EPC ratings and how they can improve their energy efficiency can potentially provide real cost savings to homeowners.”
The report also found that homebuyers are putting increased value on energy efficiency, placing a 9.4 per cent premium on properties renovated with green efficiencies in mind.
