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    DO YOU HAVE AN ELECTRICAL CERTIFICATE?

    I was recently chatting to a landlord who self-managed his properties and was having a problem with one of his tenants who had fallen into rent arrears. Despite trying all they could to help the tenant, it was clear the arrears were not going to be made up and they would continue to increase.

    The landlord was picking my brain on what paperwork was required, in the event he had to go down the court route.

    It was apparent to me that he was a good landlord and had always used an agent (not Move On) to set up a new tenant for each property and then let the tenancies rollover.

    After going through the paperwork, it was clear he had not had any electrical certificates conducted on his properties and he was completely oblivious to the fact that he needed one. He was under the impression that they would only be required for new tenants moving in after April 2021 and as none of his tenants had moved out, he hadn’t instructed his electrician to do them.

    Part of the court paperwork is to include all legislative paperwork. Also in the court waiting room is a representative from Shelter, who will go through the tenant’s paperwork as well.

    I advised him to get the electrical certificates completed ASAP.

    For the avoidance of doubt:

    SINCE APRIL 2021 – ALL RENTAL PROPERTIES MUST HAVE A VALID FIVE-YEAR EICR CERTIFICATE!

    Feeling deflated? Exhausted with all the changes? Then let us take care of your property needs. We promise to hold your hand throughout this process, giving you less stress and more freedom!

    If you fancy an informal chat any time, then email me sharon@moveon.biz with your phone number.

    Sharon

    Blog Articles

    MINIMUM EPC RATING TO CHANGE IN 2025?

    The Government is in current consultation to bring forward the change in EPC ratings from E to min ‘C’ from 2028 to 2025.

    With climate change being a prominent factor in the news at the moment, the government is keen to do their bit.

    From 2025 all new builds will be banned from putting in gas boilers to drive us away from gas as a carbon-based fuel. They are looking to replace these boilers with a heat source air pump.

    The government introduced a ‘Green Homes Grant’ in September 2020, where they would pay two thirds of an invoice and the public paid one third with a cap of £5000. However, this was closed on 31st March 2021 due to various hitches and lack of skilled workforce. There is talk of them looking at another type of grant– let’s hope so!

    Landlords will not be able to issue new tenancies unless their property is rated ‘C’, just like we did with the current system when they banned F and G ratings from the rental sector in April 2018.

    The older the property, the more likely you are to be a D or E. I would highly recommend you looking at your current EPC and seeing if you have a potential rating of ‘C’ and what the recommendations are on how to achieve this.

    If they insist on landlords upgrading properties to the pump system, this could have a negative impact on the rental sector as it just wouldn’t be affordable for many landlords and the return on investment could take several years to recoup! As they say, ‘watch this space’.

     

    Have a good week!

    Sharon Canning

     

    If you would like a friendly, no obligation chat regarding buying, selling, renting or investing in property, then please email sharon@moveon.biz   or telephone 01202 711169.