National landlord survey suggests better incentives are needed for energy efficiency upgrades

The UK private rented sector is currently waiting for the Government’s response to a consultation on raising the minimum energy efficiency standards. The proposals involve raising the minimum Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) rating for rental properties from E to C by 2030.  

This is good news for tenants living in fuel poverty – it can improve health and save an estimated £240 a year on annual energy bills[1]. 

For landlords, it’s estimated that upgrading properties to meet the new standards could cost an average of £6,100 to £6,800[2]. Yet it can make properties more attractive, affordable and comfortable for new and existing tenants.

According to the latest Voice of the Landlord survey by the TDS Charitable Foundation, the majority of landlords (six in ten) own properties which already meet the criteria for EPC band C.

However, between 28-40% of landlords own at least one energy-inefficient property, which would not meet the proposed new higher standards.

So what does the survey tell us about the potential impact on landlords of the proposed legislation? And what are the most effective ways to support and incentivise energy efficiency upgrades?

Are landlords with properties below EPC C likely to sell up?

On the one hand, landlords who own properties below EPC C are indeed somewhat likelier to be selling properties: 40% of this group is actively looking to sell, compared to 28% of landlords overall.

However, 22% of these landlords with less efficient properties are looking to buy more properties too, suggesting a more complicated situation than an oversimplified ‘landlord exodus’ narrative.

Overall, the findings illustrate that a majority of landlords (64%) have already taken some kind of step towards improving the energy efficiency of their properties.

Landlords are more likely to make energy efficiency improvements when they have a higher household income. The landlord survey found that 81% of landlords with an income of £100,000+ said they had improved their properties’ efficiency. This is compared with only 44% of landlords with an income of £24,999 or less who said the same.

Financing property upgrades will be especially difficult at the lower end of the market, where the cost is likely to be greater and the scope for raising rents to recoup the costs very limited due to the low incomes of the tenants.

TDS is calling for adequate funding for energy efficiency upgrades to be made available that reflects the range of different landlord needs and property types.

Additional research should also be carried out to explore how landlords can be incentivised to take up available funding.

Extremely low uptake of low-carbon heating systems

According to our survey, only one landlord out of all 1562 respondents had installed low-carbon heating in their property (an air-source heat pump). Virtually no landlords had any plans to install this in the future either.

The data suggests that for most landlords, there is a lack of awareness or lack of incentive to install renewable home energy systems, and similarly a lack of awareness of existing funding schemes (such as the Energy Company Obligation scheme) to help them pay for these[3].

Since 17% of all heating emissions in the UK come from homes[4], policymakers should give serious thought to home heating interventions such as:

• Rebalancing the gas and electricity prices through adjustments to levies

• A public information campaign to tackle false media narratives around heat pumps

• Expanding and/or publicizing finance programmes that support green retrofits in low-income households (of all tenure types).

Without government action, PRS homes will remain stuck on fossil-fuel gas heating indefinitely.

[1] Energy Saving Trust, ‘Landlords: how to make your property more energy efficient’, March 2025

[2] Ibid.

[3] Citizens Advice, ‘Room for improvement: Preparing landlords for new minimum energy efficiency standards’, November 2024

[4] HM Government, Heat and Buildings Strategy, October 2021