Our homes are responsible for a fifth of the UK’s carbon dioxide emissions and as part of its long term target to tackle climate change, the government has pledged that by 2035 every residential property should have an EPC rating of C or above.
These energy-efficiency ratings range from G, the worst, up to A, the best.
There’s evidently huge demand for green homes.
Research from Leaders Romans Group has revealed that 56% of us want features such as wall insulation, renewable energy sources and double or triple glazing, and over a third would pay up to 10% more for them.
However, 30% of homes in England and Wales are still rated E, F or G, and retro-fitting is pricey.
According to the English Housing Survey, the cost of upgrading a D-rated home is estimated to be £6,472, meaning payback will take 36 years on annual savings of £179.
If you want the benefits of living in a eco-friendly environment without the hassle and expense of carrying out improvements yourself, the solution is to buy a new-build.
They incorporate high levels of insulation, energy-efficient boilers, low-energy appliances and lighting, keeping bills down and emissions low.
Some also provide solar panels to generate hot water or electricity, EV charging points (soon to become compulsory) and ground or air source heat pumps instead of the gas-guzzling boilers that will be banned in new homes from 2025.
Materials are responsibly sourced, and selected housebuilders have adopted modern methods of construction, producing pre-fabricated modular homes or sections of them, in factories, which reduces waste while boosting energy-efficiency and build times.
Government figures show 84% of newly completed properties are given an A or B rating, so there’s plenty of choice for all budgets.
Kidbrooke Square in Greenwich, London SE3, has been designed with sustainability in mind, achieving a 39.6% carbon reduction target.
Buildings incorporate green rooftops and renewable energy, with A+ rated appliances and LED downlighting in all homes.
Studios are available exclusively to Londoners as part of the mayors ‘First Dibs’ policy, from £306,000, and one, two and three-bedroom apartments are also for sale.
In transforming Grade II-listed Westminster Fire Station in SW1 into 18 boutique apartments, Alchemi Group aims to reduce its impact on the environment.
Much of the existing structure has been retained to reduce the output of embodied carbon emissions and it has been thermally upgraded to cut energy demands without compromising character.
Photovoltaic panels generate renewable energy and a green roof system has improved the ecological value and air quality. From £895,000 for a one-bed apartment.
Coming soon is Orford Mews, a zero waste, carbon and energy positive micro-community of nine timber-clad homes in Walthamstow, E17 by developer GS8.
The eight houses and one apartment are built in locally sourced materials and powered by renewable sources, and residents will have access to an edible garden and reuse centre.
Houses and apartments in Hill’s Knight’s Park in Eddington, Cambridge CB3 include high-performing robust insulation, triple glazing, photovoltaic panels and mechanical ventilation in addition to heat recovery systems.
The development-wide rainwater harvesting and sustainable urban drainage system, the largest in the UK, recycles rainwater through natural drainage before filtering and returning it to homes for use in washing machines and flushing toilets. From £339,950 for a studio.
At Inholm in Northstowe, Cambridgeshire CB24, under an hour from London, House by Urban Splash is building a new neighbourhood of modular homes manufactured off-site using Modern Methods of Construction.
Packed with eco-features including top-notch insulation and solar panels on the roof, the Town Houses come in a variety of configurations, from £527,500 for a three-bed.
Head directly south and you’ll arrive at the coastal town of Newhaven in East Sussex BN9, where Miracles by Design has unveiled Active House, a collection of three-bed apartments built to the world’s highest eco standard.
Each of the apartments has infrared heating, solar panels, greywater systems to reduce water consumption, growing walls, self-cleaning windows and a self-contained studio annex, which could be rented out to pay your mortgage, via fox-and-sons.co.uk.
All homes at Hayfield Walk, Hayfield’s first Green Revolutions scheme in Hanslope, Buckinghamshire MK19 have air source heat pumps,
EV charging points and efficient underfloor heating, from £420,000 for a three-bed.
Heat pumps and solar panels come as standard at Pye Homes’ Church Farm in Radley, Oxfordshire OX14, where two-bed houses are from £380,000.
And Woodlands Manor in Radlett, Hertfordshire WD6, from luxury housebuilder Griggs, comprises nine two and three-bed all-electric apartments with air source heat pumps, electric car charging points and solar panels. From £925,000.
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