Nearly a fifth of landlords believe the government should prioritise better access to finance so they can carry out retrofits on their rental properties.

It follows calls for a stamp duty rebate aimed at incentivising homeowners to retrofit. Rebate to Renovate, promoted by the Better Homes Alliance, suggests handing a rebate to those who improve the energy performance of their homes within two years of purchase. It hopes Chancellor Jeremy Hunt will consider the policy.

Property developers

New research by property lender Together highlights how broad support for this idea extends across residential and commercial property markets. It finds that while 11% of property developers, investors and landlords are most keen to focus on commercial properties to raise the EPC through retrofit – the investment needed is still a major concern.

Its survey shows that 18% of property professionals see meeting new EPC standards as the biggest challenge this year, while the same number believe better access to finance in order to meet retrofitting plans should be a priority in the run-up to an election.

Clear appetite

Alan Davison, director of customer sales at Together, says while there’s a clear appetite for retrofitting residential properties, there are many obstacles to overcome, given the significant investment required upfront.

“What we need is innovative thinking and strong public-private partnerships to make sure existing homes and offices are either financially supported to retrofit and all new developments are built on disused brownfield sites where they’re most needed,” he explains.

The government recently confirmed that commercial landlords won’t have to meet a proposed 2025 deadline to improve their properties' energy efficiency and achieve an band C.