With the property news full of tales of woe in the banking world and the related slump in the housing market, it is easy to overlook some of the better news that the falling price trend has influenced. In an intriguing twist it has emerged from recent research that trading up to a bigger property is now financially less problematic than only a year ago, depending on the size of house one needs to buy.
Upsizing your home – easier for some
February 26th, 2009 HIP-Consultant.co.uk Posted in Energy Saving, Mortgages, Property Market 1 Comment »
Energy efficiency in the home – how much can you save?
February 21st, 2009 HIP-Consultant.co.uk Posted in Energy Saving, EPC 5 Comments »
The continuing credit crunch is affecting homeowners in great numbers, and with no sign of improvement imminent it could be worth looking at just how efficient your home is.
We all think we have done enough to improve our homes, but how many of us have? And when it comes to the crunch, just how much can be saved and how?
Million pound prize for energy efficient Scottish homes
February 12th, 2009 HIP-Consultant.co.uk Posted in Energy Saving 1 Comment »
An interesting initiative by the Scottish government sees an annual prize of £1million offered to the winner of the best scheme for improving energy efficiency. The Scottish Energy Efficiency Design Awards, as they will be known, invite applications from April this year, and the scheme was announced by Scottish Minister for the Environment Michael Russell.
It is said that Scotland is home to a large proportion of ‘hard to treat properties, with the government citing some 650,000 homes, or 28 percent of total housing stock, as being within this category, hence the initiative is seen as driving inspiration for further investigation and research into energy efficiency in the home.
Continuing Professional Development (CPD) as a DEA
February 2nd, 2009 HIP-Consultant.co.uk Posted in Energy Assessors, EPC 2 Comments »
Continuing Professional Development continues to be a ‘hot topic’ within the domestic energy assessor industry; with accreditation schemes auditing their members and DEAs looking to provide evidence of the required CPD hours.
We were very happy to announce we had been asked to help design a website for Continuing Professional Development for those in the industry in a previous article ‘What is Continuing Professional Development (CPD) for Domestic Energy Assessors?’; and even more pleased to be able to say it is now live !!
Energy saving on a budget
January 19th, 2009 HIP-Consultant.co.uk Posted in Energy Saving, Home Improvements, Property Portals 1 Comment »
The winter months are when ones attention is turned to keeping homes warm yet many homeowners will be turning on dormant heating systems that could be operating far more efficiently with the help of a few affordable maintenance tips.
Householder’s should keep a close eye on the efficiency of the insulation that is present in the property as a great proportion of heat is lost through poorly insulated walls, windows and heating systems.
In a typical British home, around one-third of the heat produced by a central heating system is rapidly lost through the roof, ceiling and walls. This means that for a poorly insulated property up to £1 out of every £3 spent on heating is being wasted.
So what can the average homeowner do without spending a fortune?
Saving water – a quick and easy guide
January 1st, 2009 HIP-Consultant.co.uk Posted in Energy Saving 1 Comment »
Water may seem like a never ending commodity to householders – after all, we turn on the tap and its there – but the truth is that a complicated procedure is needed to ensure that each and every home in the UK has a constant supply of usable, clean water.
It’s important, therefore, that we do our bit to keep consumption to less than excessive levels, and here we look at a few easy and recommended methods of saving water in the home.
Commercial EPC Regulations – properties below 50 sqm
December 22nd, 2008 HIP-Consultant.co.uk Posted in EPC 4 Comments »
With Commercial Energy Performance Certificate (CEPC) legislation now rolled out across the country there has proven to be some confusion in areas of the regulations, particularly with regard to what properties are exempt from needing a CEPC. The biggest area of contention seems to be based on the size of a property.
There is an urban myth that is gaining popularity within the market that non domestic properties of 50 square meters and below are exempt from needing a Commercial Energy Performance Certificate as required by law.
DEAs the answer to eradicating fuel poverty?
December 20th, 2008 HIP-Consultant.co.uk Posted in Energy Saving, EPC 4 Comments »
The domestic energy assessor industry is deveolping from its fledgling existence with ambitious plans to utilise the skill base we have within the UK. The energy assessment industry has met numerous challenges since its inception, certainly during the past year.
Maybe due to the New Year approaching, maybe due to the frustration from the lack of progress made by the Government in certain areas, there has been a noticeable amount of reflection on goals achieved within our industry and future aspirations that would benefit our industry but more so the country and arguably the entire planet.
Return of the Home Condition report (HCR)?
December 16th, 2008 HIP-Consultant.co.uk Posted in Energy Assessors, Home Information Packs, News 4 Comments »
This week has seen news released about developments of Home Information Packs and has given rise to speculation about Home Condition Reports (HCR) making a suprise return. The main topics and news within Magaret Beckett’s statement; industry professionals and associated organisation had some expectation of though we were all unsure of the exact timing until recently.
Reduce your bills as energy prices rise
December 12th, 2008 HIP-Consultant.co.uk Posted in Energy Saving Comments Off on Reduce your bills as energy prices rise
Our daily lives are dominated by the necessary use of energy; gas and electric are a vital part of every day life. Both are expensive, and seemingly increasing with no signs of halting; we find ourselves evermore needing to look for ways of finding cheaper energy prices, or reducing our energy consumption.
Last week energy companies were threatened with possible legal action due to not passing on wholesale cuts in oil prices to consumers, which are linked to gas and electric prices.
Zero carbon homes, the future?
December 5th, 2008 HIP-Consultant.co.uk Posted in Energy Saving 2 Comments »
It has been very difficult of late to pick up a newspaper, or turn on the news without hearing further of the fate of the world thanks to climate change. We are being told that we need to reduce our ‘carbon footprint’, in order to help bring down the damaging levels of carbon dioxide, the most prevalent ‘greenhouse gas’, that is gathering in our atmosphere.
Recently a number of ‘zero carbon’ homes have appeared on the market – but are they a genuine step forward, or simply a neat and timely sales pitch?