Home energy certificates will be have to be produced for all sales and rentals that take place after 1 June.
The Spanish Government has introduced a new law by Royal Decree requiring all vendors and landlords to get an energy certificate before the first of June.
An energy certificate will have to be produced by all vendors, and landlords wishing to rent out their properties on contracts of 4 months or longer.
According to some estimates, as much as 60pc of Spain’s housing stock has no energy efficiency measures to speak of. Housing is responsible for 17pc of the country’s energy consumption, so greater energy efficiency at home could save Spain a big chunk in energy bills (and bring it into line with European standards).
Along with classifying the energy efficiency of every building, the new certificate also contains recommendations for improvements in energy efficiency.
The problem is, many think the new law will simply be ignored by millions of Spaniards living in energy inefficient homes.
According to the blog The Spanish Brick, the certificate could cost €90 for a flat, and €250 for a house.
Alva Hendrie says:
Can someone please advise me where you go to obtain this certificate? I guess your property has to be analysed by someone. We have had our property for 10 years but are considering selling it due to all this new legislation being imposed by the Spanish Government. Recently we were discussing new legislation, taxes etc likely to be applied, and not surprisingly it is now becoming reality!
Mark Stucklin says:
You could try one of the outfits listed here:
http://www.certificadoenergetico.es/
Pauline Grande Lopez says:
I have searched various sites only to find that the cost of the energy certificate could cost even more that 500 euros depending on the size of your house, mine is big. Why does this have to cost so much in Spain, when in England these certificates cost around only 60 pounds? Does Spain want to do anything to help itself? It seems not.
Christopher Miller says:
Hi, our company issue Energy Performance Certificates here in Spain. Unlike the UK only architects, technical architects and some registered engineers who have done the additional course to become an assessor are able to issue the certificate and register it on line against the catastro of the property. The price in Spain is more expensive than in the UK, however when compared to the rest of Europe the prices in Spain are about average. Sweden, Germany and many other countries charges are a lot more. The UK is cheaper partly because of the HIP’s pack which was scrapped. A lot of people in the UK saw HIPS as a cash cow so paid quite a lot of money to go on the courses to become able to offer the HIPS pack. When HIPS was scrapped there were an excess of people who suddenly had nothing to do. The only part of HIPS that was kept was the Energy Performance Certificate, hence the low prices. If anybody wants more information just contact me via mt website or e mail and I will try to answer your questions as well as I can
John McDonagh says:
Hi,
Does the deadline of 1st June only refer to contracts signed after that date or would it also apply if the contract of sale was signed in May and the completion took place in June?
Martyn Swan - ExtremaCasa says:
It’s the date of completion that counts; when the contract was signed is irrelevant. If the sale is completed on are after 1st June the Notary won’t sign it off without an energy certificate
Jon Borresen says:
Hi Marty,
thanks for your comments on Spanish Property Insight – it seems you are the man with the knowledge on this. My apartment is just on the market (in Villaricos)- so do I need the certifcate now or is it adequate the we obtai this the time of executing the contracts.
thanks and regards
Jon
Jon Borresen says:
Hi Chris
do you cover the Villaricos area (an hour north of Almeria) and what are your charges please.
You are right about the charges – I paid £50 in the UK for a full EPC for a detached house.
thanks and regards
Jon
Christopher Miller says:
When comparing the costs for certificates be aware of companies offering an “Energy Survey” for a bargain price. This is not a registered Certificado de Eficiencia Energética and will not be any good at the notary. Make sure your assessor is able to issue and register your certificate. Most people do not really want the certificate, but it would be worse to pay out for something that is in effect not worth the paper it is written on. Chris@homecomforts.es
Andy - EPC Tenerife says:
We have carried out and had back our first 15 certificates. I went along with the architects to several to see what sort of work is involved. The biggest problems to come to light so far have been that no owners have floor plans so the architects have to create their own and a lot of owners do not know what a catastral reference number is or where to find it / dont have their paperwork available etc.
Apart from that is seems pretty straightforward and I am updating our site ( http://www.epcTenerife.es ) as and when new information becomes available. Of note, all of the grades so far have been very low probably because not a lot of thought is given to conserving heat in the South of Tenerife!