The government’s Green Deal initiative is to be launched in October – perhaps?
When it does emerge, it will enable homeowners to borrow up to £10,000, mainly through their energy supplier, to make energy-saving improvements to their homes.
It will not be a government grant, instead the theory is that you should be able to repay the loan on the basis of the savings that you’ll be making on your quarterly heating bill!
The loan will not be on the homeowner but on home! So if you sell up, the loan will be passed onto your buyer, which will increase the sale value of your home? But obviously they should be getting a good deal – in fact, a Green Deal!
Of course, in the case of most homes more built more than 20 years ago, £10,000 will only ‘scratch the surface’ of what it may really cost to bring a home up to an acceptable energy efficiency level!
The National Home Improvement Council (NHIC) has said that a total home improvement is more likely to cost £20,000, but it seems that this may be a sizeable underestimate?
Because, two years ago the Building Research Establishment suggested it was more likely to be £80,000 per home and, subsequently, another estimate puts the cost at over £100,000!
The latter would cover a total ‘makeover’ of solar panels or wind turbine, loft and cavity wall insulation, new doors and windows, new central heating system with fully automatic controls, a heat pump, smart meter, water conservation, and so on.
In fact, a pretty thorough refurbishment that should do the carbon reduction trick! Green Deal, however, does not specify what may be required to satisfy the requirements, but presumably leaves this up to the assessor appointed to come into your home a see exactly what’s what!
It’s interesting, that the consumer magazine Which? ‘supports the government’s ambition of helping people make their homes more efficient’ but says ‘we’re not sure we could recommend the Green Deal in its current form.’
The NHIC is sceptical, too, nevertheless it says its very worthwhile giving Green Deal your very close attention when it does appear to see if it will work for you?
More information: www.decc.gov.uk/