Industry professionals can now comment on the draft standard
The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) has opened an eight-week long consultation to gather input from members and industry professionals on the new RICS Residential Retrofit Standard.
The new standard will be developed following the consultation, as a response to a demand for high quality residential retrofit advice, brought by increasingly high energy prices and the UK government’s net zero targets.
RICS said the Retrofit Standard would create a framework within which its members could advise customers on retrofit options in homes across the UK, in turn, supporting the nationwide effort to decarbonise the residential property sector.
Members of the professional body and other industry professionals can now view and download the draft standard, comment, and answer a survey. The consultation will close by end of the day on September 12.
The most recent RICS Residential Market Survey showed that energy efficient homes could be more desirable and could help to retain a property’s value.
According to results of a consumer survey carried out in July 2023 by RICS in conjunction with YouGov, 36% of homeowners would not know how to go about making their homes more environmentally friendly. Also, 78% of respondents stated that they would find it helpful if their surveyor could offer retrofitting advice when purchasing a property.
An estimated 25 million homes in the UK will require some form of energy improvement work and, according to RICS, independent professional advice will be critical.
“UK homes are not as energy efficient as they could or should be,” commented Antony Parkinson, senior property specialist at the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors. “This needs to change, and we have to act now.
“Improving the energy efficiency needs to be incorporated into the ongoing maintenance of our homes. Efficient homes use less energy which will save money and help save the planet. We are developing the new RICS retrofit standard at pace so that RICS members can help customers improve the energy efficiency of their homes.”
