Connells buy national EA firm

As seen on Estate Agent Today

Connells have bought a very large energy assessor firm, Vibrant Energy Matters.

The deal, which was not publicly announced, completed towards the end of July for an undisclosed sum.

Vibrant Energy Matters was formed last November after the merger of Green Energy Matters and Vibrant Energy.

Clients are in both the residential and commercial sectors, and include estate agents, letting agents, landlords, and local authorities.

The merger positioned the company as the largest independent provider of EPC Certificates and related energy services, with over 100 staff and the capacity to complete over 100,000 Energy Performance Certificates a year.

A spokeswoman for Connells said: “VEM was already a major supplier to us and Connells wanted to drive economies of scale and higher volumes for both parties.

“The deal is mutually beneficial and will give both parties more business and extend our reach in areas like social housing.”

The price of EPC Certificates has been driven steadily downwards – to the anger of Domestic Energy Assessors, who are now offered as little as £15 to complete them – but they are likely to become increasingly big business under the Government’s Green Deal programme, due to be implemented in 2012.

Many thousands of homes – not just those on the market for sale and rent – will undergo energy audits.

At the same time, it is highly likely that Energy Performance Certificates will become a more important part of the sales process, with buyers of energy inefficient homes being penalised by higher Stamp Duty.


Comments

Brussels ruling on EPCs set to overturn Shapps' decision

Submitted by chrisiread on Tue, 17/08/2010 - 07:29.

Posted on Estate Agent Today Monday 16th August 2010

An EU Directive will make it compulsory for energy efficiency ratings to be published in all UK homes ‘for sale’ advertisements, including on For Sale boards, from 2012, it has been claimed.

If correct, the directive, part of the Energy Performance in Buildings legislation, will effectively reverse a recent decision of the Coalition Government, and will bring back a delay in first day marketing.

In June, housing minister Grant Shapps announced it was no longer necessary to have an Energy Performance Certificate in place before a property could be marketed. It was only necessary to have commissioned one.

But according to the UK's largest supplier of EPC Certificates, the EU directive means that an EPC must be available at the point when marketing begins. 

The directive will further alarm critics who say that no matter what the UK Government decides, it can always be over-ruled by the EU, and that the country is in truth ruled from Brussels.

The ruling would also infuriate those estate agents who say that buyers are simply not interested in EPCs.

Marc Blomfield, managing director of The National EPC Company, said: “People need to know what they are buying into, right from the outset. It’s their right. At the moment, potential property purchasers don’t have to be made aware of a property’s energy performance at their first viewing and often find out later down the line, when it’s too late.

“People don’t realise one-fifth of UK homes are rated F or G in the energy efficiency scale.

“People get too bogged down looking at room sizes and gardens. It’s about time efficiency joined the list of important considerations for home buyers: everyone wants lower energy bills, after all.

“There is plenty of financial help available to allow people get their homes up to scratch before selling, too.”

A recent study conducted by a quango, the Energy Saving Trust, found most properties could be improved to meet current green energy standards for less than £3,000. The same study also claimed 70% of property buyers would negotiate a property’s price if they discovered it was not energy efficient.

The Energy Saving Trust has also called for energy inefficient properties to be banned from both the sales and rental markets.

The UK Government is also seriously considering charging buyers of properties with poor EPC Certificates a premium on Stamp Duty.