Why invest in Eco property

Savings on bills

The majorly obvious reason for investing in eco friendly property and systems as a professional investor is the money that can be saved on bills.

This could vary depending on whether you as the Landlord are responsible for the bills.

Serviced accommodation and short term let properties where the Landlord pays all the bills will be the main types of investments where this applies most.

HMOs can often have bills included in the rental price with occupants to, so again as landlord the more you can save on bills the better.

If your tenant is responsible for the gas, water and electric bills then the benefit is not as obviously direct. However, tenants are savvy too and will want to save money on their bills. This means with a highly energy efficient apartment you may find this a useful selling point to tenants, or you may even be able to charge more on the rent.

 

Eco grants available to Landlords

 

The Boiler Upgrade Scheme

This scheme (BUS for short) is designed to encourage all property owners including landlords to opt for low carbon heating systems and offers a generous grant.

 

You can get:

£5,000 off the cost and installation of an air source heat pump

£5,000 off the cost and installation of a biomass boiler

£6,000 off the cost and installation of a ground source heat pump

 

Eligibility

• This is applicable for one grant per property
• Applies to England and Wales
• Must own the property
• Landlords and 2^nd homeowners are eligible
• Up to a 45Kwth capacity
• There can be no outstanding EPC recommendations for loft or cavity insulation

 

Social housing and new builds are excluded along with property that has already received a boiler grant.

 

0% VAT on some energy saving materials

Applicable for the next five years, certain eco-friendly building materials and systems are free from VAT for homeowners.

This is applicable to the items such as…

• Controls for central heating and hot water systems
• Solar panels
• Air source heat pumps
• Ground source heat pumps
• Wood-fuelled boilers
• Insulation materials
• Draught stripping
• Micro combined heat and power units
• Wind and water turbines

 

Green Deal Strategy

The green deal strategy is basically just a loan from the government to have you upgrade your property in several ways and includes all sorts of eco improvements such as…

• Insulation
• Heating
• Double Glazing
• Renewable energy systems

And more…

You can speak to a professional from the government on this by going here https://www.gov.uk/green-deal-energy-saving-measures

 

Electric Vehicle ChargePoint

This is a simple grant which can cover up to 75% of the cost  of installing an Electric Vehicle ChargePoint (limited to £350 per charge point).

As a landlord you are actually able to receive up to 200 of these grants an year on residential properties and 100 on commercial property.

If you make the claim before this scheme ends, the government will honour it.

 

Who can apply

Firstly you need to apply as a company or VAT registered entity… Most investors will already be so.

• Landlords
• Right to Manage company can apply
• Any freehold holder of a property
• Owners of common areas
• Charities
• Private registered providers of social housing

To apply and for full information on this visit…

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/ev-chargepoint-grant-for-landlords-customer-guidance/ev-chargepoint-grant-for-landlords-customer-guidance

 

Positive feeling of doing right thing for environment

You could easily argue that doing the right thing for future generations is the greatest advantage. By doing your part as a property owner you will be making a difference to yours and your tenants carbon footprint. The more properties you own the greater an impact you can make.

Growing niche pool of young renters wanting eco-friendly living

Going green is probably one of the biggest topics of the 21^st century and arguably the biggest problem facing humanity.

This is felt more and more by younger generations that will be the ones dealing with the consequences. As such there is a growing demand of renters looking to live as eco-friendly as possible.

This could potentially push the market for eco-living to way beyond what we are currently seeing.