Royal Tunbridge Wells Household Heating Bills Set to Rise to £39,407,130 in 2022

The energy bills of every Tunbridge Wells resident will rise in April as the price cap increases to account for the global increase in the cost of gas. Those not on the gas mains will still be hit as the UK uses gas to make 45% of its electricity.

So, what can Tunbridge Wells residents do to reduce their energy consumption and ultimately save money?

Firstly, let's look at the scale of the costs.

Considering the increase in energy prices from April, the combined energy bills for the whole of Tunbridge Wells come to …

• £39,407,130 for central heating

• £7,901,362 for hot water

• £4,293,976 for lighting

There are extra energy costs for washing, fridges, etc., yet I wanted to focus just on the home as this is a property blog.

Everyone's bills will be around 50% more expensive in 2022 than in 2021, but it’s not too late for Tunbridge Wells people to take some quick steps to cut their energy bills and, at the same time, cut our carbon footprint. 

Just over a quarter of the UK’s carbon comes from heating and lighting our 27.6 million homes, and each UK home produces

4.39 tonnes of carbon dioxide a year.

Upgrading the energy efficiency of UK homes is seen as a vital step to attempting to mitigate the issues of climate change, fuel poverty and our nation's energy security.

So, what are some quick wins for Tunbridge Wells residents to reduce the energy bills on their homes, and how will energy efficiency play a more significant part in the value of Tunbridge Wells homes in the future?

1. By turning down the thermostat by 1 degree, the average saving would be an average annual saving of £105.91 per home and each homes carbon dioxide would be reduced by an eighth of a tonne (it all adds up!). 

2. Replacing your bulbs when you can with energy-efficient bulbs will, on average, reduce your lighting costs from £172 per year to £103 per year.

3. What time does your heating come on and off? Could it come on later and go off earlier?  

4. Smart meters (which are installed for free) are estimated to help lower UK homes’ electricity use by nearly 3% and gas use by 2% … again it’s all margin gains.

These are just a handful of ideas. Check out the internet for others as it's fascinating how much energy we use for overfull kettles, chargers left on and tech on standby etc.

Yet, these things will only scratch the surface … many of us will need to go further, especially Tunbridge Wells landlords, to retrofit our properties to make them more energy-efficient. 

This is particularly important as in June the Government announced they would make the country carbon neutral by 2050, meaning Britain’s homes need some enormous retro-fitting to meet these ambitious climate targets.

In 2018, the Government required private landlords to improve the energy rating of their rental properties by prohibiting the rental of any property with an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) rating of F and G (the lowest ratings). Yet from 2025, that will be increased to C for all new tenancies and 2028 for all existing tenancies (more on these EPCs below).

I don’t believe there is an appetite to mandate private homeowners to do this work, though you never know in the future.

So, how do you find out about your

Tunbridge Wells home’s eco-credentials?

Since 2007, every new home that has been built, rented out or put on to the market in Tunbridge Wells has had to have an EPC, giving it a rating between A and G (rather like those stickers you see on fridges and washing machines). 

A is the highest rating (i.e. best energy efficient and greener), and G is the worst efficient rating. 

36.1% of Tunbridge Wells homes are in that eco-friendly A to C

energy performance band rating, compared to the

national average of 40.1%.

So, what next? Well, the Government will attempt to make the green revolution as painless as possible with technology.

In the future, we might have hydrogen central heating instead of mains gas; or have solar panels for electricity, all triple glazed windows and even ground source heating - sounds fanciful? Well, who would have thought some of the most wanted cars would be electric 20 years ago?

There is no doubt that the energy efficiency of our homes will rise in the coming years as the cost of fuel increases and people's opinion on going green changes. 

You don’t need to spend thousands of pounds to find out what you can do to make your property greener and cost less. Look at your EPC and it will tell you what small changes you can make to improve your Tunbridge Wells home’s energy efficiency rating and ultimately save yourself money. If you want to find the EPC rating of your Tunbridge Wells home, go to epcregister.com. 

If you need an EPC, drop me a line as I know some great local energy assessors that can easily do an EPC on your property at a price that won't cost the earth!

 

1,247 Royal Tunbridge Wells Landlords Could Be Hit With £14k Bills and Red Tape in Tory 'Levelling Up' Plans

 • Some Tunbridge Wells landlords face bills of between £11,000 to £14,000 as Michael Gove, the Housing Minister, declared an attack on poor quality private rental homes.

• 1,247 Tunbridge Wells rental properties will require upgrading. The Government announced in their ‘Levelling Up’ White Paper last week they plan to introduce a new minimum standard for private rental properties.

• Also, the White Paper wants every landlord in Tunbridge Wells (5,353 of you) to go on a Landlord Register and proposes the removal of Section 21 no-fault evictions. This could make it more difficult for you to get possession of your Tunbridge Wells rental property.

• Are these proposed changes another nail in the buy-to-let coffin for Tunbridge Wells landlords?

On the face of it, yes, it could be seen as another attack on the humble Tunbridge Wells landlord, having to spend money on their properties and get tangled up with red tape on a register and then having no-fault evictions removed. 

Yet, as always, the devil is in the detail ...

This ‘Levelling Up Bill’ is a White Paper. White Papers are policy documents created by the existing Government that set out their future proposals for legislation. Many White Papers don’t even make it to the House of Commons to be debated on, and even then, it needs to be voted on by both Houses of Parliament before becoming law. Any changes are at least two or three years away, and that’s assuming that it gets debated and subsequently approved.

Many have said the White Paper is supposed to lay out how to sort the challenge of rebalancing the UK economy that is suffering from the highest level of regional inequality than any G8 country. This is a gargantuan challenge …

yet the Levelling Up White Paper reads very much like a shopping list of great ideas without the means to pay for it.

One of the 12 points in the White Paper was focusing on housing, with a plan to introduce a new minimum standard for rental properties, a landlord register and the removal of no-fault evictions (as an aside, there was also a mention of a possible reintroduction of Home Information Packs - remember those from 2009!).

So, what does this mean for the landlords of the 5,353

private rental properties in Tunbridge Wells?

Sub Standard Rental Properties

The proposed changes will mean rental homes in the private sector will have to meet two specific standards that the existing 3,725 social housing homes in Tunbridge Wells currently need to meet.

The first being called the ‘Decent Homes Standard’ (DHS) and the second, the Housing, Health and Safety Rating System (HHSRS) evaluation. 

Looking at data from the Government, there are 1,247 private rental properties in Tunbridge Wells that are considered substandard under these two measures and each one would cost between £11,000 and £14,000 to bring up to the prescribed standard. That means ...

the estimated total cost to improve the 1,247 Tunbridge Wells properties, that are considered substandard, could be as high as £17,461,486.

All of that would have to come out of the pockets of Tunbridge Wells landlords!

Yet both systems of standards (DHS & HHSRS) have been slated by many (even by the Government itself). 

The DHS criteria for the standard are as follows:

1. It must meet the current statutory minimum standard for housing

2. It must be in a reasonable state of repair

3. It must have reasonably modern facilities and services

4. It must provide a reasonable degree of thermal comfort

Note how the word ‘reasonable’ is used in three of the four points of the DHS. Reasonable is an arbitrary and a very much subjective point of view. It screams loopholes and get out clauses to me.

Looking at the HHSRS, the Government announced just before the pandemic in June 2019 that the HHSRS would be revamped after it was found to be ‘complicated and inefficient to use’.

Putting aside how one measures the standards, it is a simple fact that there are many Tunbridge Wells rental properties that are substandard. I believe it right the Government have an ambition to halve the number of sub-standard private rentals by 2030. However, would it surprise you that … 

in 2006, 46.7% of private rented homes in the UK were classed as substandard and today that has reduced, without any legislation, to 23.3%. One must ask if new legislation is now required?

Also, if you recall in an article I wrote recently (drop me line if you would like me to send it to you), Tunbridge Wells landlords will be faced with bringing their properties up to an energy rating (EPC) of C between 2026 and 2028 in legislation already announced. 

Most of the works to meet that EPC rating requirement will be the same works to meet this new DHS and HHSRS. Also, in that article, I discussed how the Government have suggested that certain allowances will be made for landlords on rental properties that can’t be improved. 

So, I think Tunbridge Wells landlords should sit tight and let the Government shine more light on this in the coming months before any knee jerk reactions are made.

Landlord Register

To be honest, there are several city/borough registers around the UK for landlords. Experience has shown they seem to add an extra level of bureaucracy and red tape. The register would be for every Tunbridge Wells buy-to-let landlord and rogue landlords would be struck off whilst allowing tenants new redress rights. Another reason to employ the services of a letting agent to sort!  

End of No-fault Evictions

Again, I spoke about this a few weeks ago with the proposed removal of Section 21 to evict a tenant (again, if you want a copy, drop me a line). If you recall, I stated that no-fault evictions were removed in Scotland over four years ago and the apocalyptic suggestions it would kill the rental market for Scottish landlords was not forthcoming. Now of course, the Scots strengthened the other grounds to evict a tenant. If the Government strengthen the Section 8 legislation, again, I cannot see this being an issue south of the border. Again, time will tell once the Government put more meat on the bones of the White Paper. 

Conclusion

Many of the announcements made in the Levelling Up White Paper are re-hashed proposed legislation that has been on the books for the last couple of years.

This White Paper is not another nail in the coffin of

buy-to-let in Tunbridge Wells.

Yet, many commentators have cautioned that more landlords with substandard homes will sell up because of these proposed changes, warning the sell up would add to the private rental sector's shortage of homes, thus pushing up rents. 

If that was true, that would increase rental returns on Tunbridge Wells buy-to-let and attract more landlords into the sector, wouldn’t it?

But if you don’t agree that other local landlords will buy these rental properties that other landlords are selling, who will buy their Tunbridge Wells properties from them? It will be Tunbridge Wells renters, who are now able to buy because the price has come down, meaning equilibrium should return to the market.  

This is all theoretical and there are shortages/gluts in specific locations. Let us not forget it was 12/18 months ago that rents were dropped by double digit percentage points in the space of a couple of months in the big cities. Those rent drops weren’t anything to do with landlords buying up City Centre rental properties, but demand plummeted with 20 something tenants moving back in with their parents during the first lockdown and the months that followed. Yet, now rents have bounced back to pre-pandemic levels (and more) with the return of tenants to the cities.

In a nutshell, if Tunbridge Wells landlords do end up selling in their droves (which they won’t), yet if they do, those Tunbridge Wells properties will still exist.

Few of them will be left empty because most of them will be bought by other Tunbridge Wells landlords as they will be attracted to the sector as inflation takes hold whilst others will be bought by first-time buyers.

What goes around, comes around. So, let’s see what happens in the coming months. In the meantime, if you’re a Tunbridge Wells landlord and you want to discuss anything in this article, please either drop me a line or send me an email.

Royal Tunbridge Wells Homeowners Pocketed £341k Each in the Last 20 Years

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• The average house price in Tunbridge Wells has increased by 176.9% to £533,000 in the last 20 years, a profit of £340,500

• That means, when adjusted for inflation in those two decades, Tunbridge Wells house prices have risen in real terms by 104.8%

• What does this mean for existing Tunbridge Wells homeowners and first-time buyers trying to get on the Tunbridge Wells property ladder?

Since 2001, UK average house prices have risen by an astonishing 187.2% across the UK, while in London the figure is 247.6%. 

Looking back at the people that bought in those first few years of the new Millennium, few of those buying or selling property in 2001 could have forecast the massive financial impact that their decision then would have on the rest of their lives. 

In those years, there have been winners and losers, where some Tunbridge Wells buyers have made hundreds of thousands of pounds and Tunbridge Wells renters have paid out tens of thousands of pounds and yet been unable to buy their first home – but life is often not as simple as that, so in this article I wanted to discuss the matter further.

The average house price in Tunbridge Wells has increased by 176.9% to £533,000 in the last 20 years, a profit of £340,500.

Now of course these are average prices and don’t take inflation in to consideration.

Yet even when adjusted for inflation, Tunbridge Wells house prices have still risen by 104.8% in the last 20 years.

Characteristically, the longer a homeowner has owned their Tunbridge Wells property, the larger the gain when they sell. Yet most of these profits are never seen by Tunbridge Wells homeowners. It has never been money in the bank unless you sell up and downsize or move somewhere cheaper. Instead, these gains are re-invested back into the housing market when they buy their next home.

So, whether the gains are banked or tied up in their bricks and mortar, it looks like all the Tunbridge Wells homeowners are in the driving seat.  

What about all the Tunbridge Wells first-time buyers, priced out of the market and unable to get on to the property ladder? 

Are the young of Tunbridge Wells losing out again?

Reading the newspapers you would think so, yet nothing could be further from the truth. In fact …

It’s 22.8% cheaper today to buy a house

in Tunbridge Wells compared to 2007

That isn’t a typo!

In 2002, 28.4% of a first-time buyer’s household income went on the mortgage payments. Today, that figure stands at 37.7%, yet in 2007, it was 48.8% ... hence why it’s cheaper today!

Of course, for most young Tunbridge Wells potential first-time buyers, the other largest barrier to home ownership is the matter of raising an adequate deposit.

Rising rents (and future energy prices) won’t help and will in fact make this problem worse, giving ambitious Tunbridge Wells first-time buyers not much left at the end of the month to save a deposit for their first home. 

With soaring Tunbridge Wells house prices, this means the amount Tunbridge Wells renters need to save for their deposit is growing year on year. 

For these annoyed renters, there is the unpleasant irony that if they could only get on the Tunbridge Wells housing ladder, they would find themselves better off. They would spend a lower proportion of their monthly take home pay on keeping a roof over their heads. 

Some people in the press have suggested the older generation, with all the equity tied up in their homes over the last 20 years, should release some of the money and give it to their children or grandchildren to help them on the ladder, maybe?

Reports in the press have also described many homeowners in their 60’s (and older) changing their plans to move home. Many were planning to downsize, to release the tied-up equity in their home. That equity would either be used to invest in the bank to produce an income for them and/or to help their children (sometimes even grandchildren) on to the property ladder.

Yet with the interest paid by banks and building societies on any lump sum being very low, to many mature homeowners it hardly seems worthwhile making the move to downsize. This means many younger would-be first-time buyers are missing out on help from the Bank of Mum and Dad (or the Bank of Grandad and Grandma) with their deposit.

However, the problems caused by low interest rates could also be their saviour.

Many older homeowners have turned to equity release, thus allowing them to get hold of a share of the equity amassed in their property, in exchange for a tax-free lump sum of cash.

Cash that could be used to help with

deposits for their children/grandchildren?

The mature homeowner then stays in their larger family home and helps their family buy a property. 

Whilst I am not a mortgage adviser (and you must take proper advice from a qualified mortgage broker), equity release mortgages don’t have end dates and the interest payments are rolled up (until you pass away). This means that there aren’t any monthly payments. 

The interest rate you pay is normally fixed for the mortgage and because interest rates are so low, that means the debt shouldn’t balloon up. And should you decide to sell in a few years’ time, you just pay back the capital, redemption fee and the small amount of interest accrued.

Now of course, that does mean there will be less for

your offspring to inherit when you pass away.

Equity release mortgages though have had some bad press recently.  In the past they were unregulated and pricey. Yet today, there is more protection for borrowers.

One answer to the growing interest debt is to pay part or all the monthly mortgage interest charged, yet you must have the income for that. 

You also need to take advice on how the equity release will affect your liability for nursing home fees and inheritance tax. Also, if only one person in your home is the owner of the property, if that homeowner dies, the partner who is not on the mortgage (because only owners can go on a mortgage) won’t have any rights to stay in the family home. 

Finally, if you are planning to move, don’t just compare the interest rate, but the redemption charge for early repayment – some of them can be very high.  

My advice – take professional advice and speak to your family and involve them. Yes, we have all built up some amazing equity in our Tunbridge Wells homes, and yes, there is potential to help the younger generations with that wealth. Just go in with your eyes open and know all the facts, all the pros and all the cons – then decide what is best for you with all that information to hand.

What are your thoughts, as a mature Tunbridge Wells homeowner or a first-time buyer, on this? It would be good to hear from you.

My 11 Rules to Buying a Royal Tunbridge Wells Property

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Finding your next Tunbridge Wells property, be that for yourself to live in or as a Tunbridge Wells buy-to-let landlord, can sometimes be a scary task. You are possibly making one of the biggest purchases of your life, and you want to ensure you make the right choice.

 

Buying your next property is all about finding a Tunbridge Wellsproperty with the features that match your requirements. However, what might be important to you as a homebuyer, might not be as important to other Tunbridge Wells homebuyers.

 

Some features will be red line must haves, whilst other features might be more negotiable, yet understanding what your requirements need to be, will make it easier to find the Tunbridge Wells home of your dreams.

 

Let’s look at my top 11 rules you need to consider when buying a property in Tunbridge Wells.

 

1. Location, Location, Location in Tunbridge Wells

 

You can change many things within a property, but location isn’t one. They say you should buy a property for the things you can change. Go and visit the different neighbourhoods of Tunbridge Wells. Don’t just drive through them, walk through them at different times of the day. Look at weekdays as well as weekends. Think about transport links with access to bus routes, arterial roads. If you have children (or your tenants may have), think about school catchment areas for primary/secondary schools.

 

2. Tunbridge Wells Bedrooms

 

Did you know there are 64,745 bedrooms in Tunbridge Wells?

 

Well, you do now! Anyway, the number of bedrooms is a very significant consideration when buying your new Tunbridge Wellshome. If you need bedrooms for your children, the location of the bedrooms could be an issue. Depending on the age of any children, you might not want them to be a long way from the master bedroom, or if the children are teenagers, the opposite could be true. Bedroom size is also important. Is there enough space for children to study or have wardrobes? Do you need bedrooms for an office? If office space is required, you might want to consider a property with one less bedroom and one more reception room – and it will probably be a little cheaper. All things to consider.

 

3. Potential Future House Price Growth in Tunbridge Wells

 

The type of Tunbridge Wells house you buy will determine how it increases in value in the future. Now this shouldn’t be the main consideration, yet it’s important to consider.

 

Since 2001, the different types of property in Tunbridge Wells have risen by different percentages:

 

• Tunbridge Wells detached properties have risen by 147.0%

• Tunbridge Wells semi-detached properties have risen by 162.5%

• Tunbridge Wells town houses/terraced properties have risen by 172.7%

• Tunbridge Wells apartments/flats have risen by 144.9%

 

On a standalone point for Tunbridge Wells landlords, the level of rent and yield are important considerations for your Return on Investment (ROI). There tends to be an inverse relationship between capital growth and yield (i.e. Tunbridge Wells properties with higher capital growth tend to have lower rental yields). If you are a Tunbridge Wells landlord and have any questions on this (or any point), drop me a note.

 

4. The Overall Interior Size Of Your Future Tunbridge Wells Property

 

On average a person only views five houses before they buy a house and only spends around 20 minutes in each on a viewing. Therefore, I would advise that you have a good idea about the size of Tunbridge Wells home you require before you start your search. If you have a big family you are going to need a bigger houseobviously, yet you still need the budget to afford to buy the bigger Tunbridge Wells home. A top tip for you, the general rule of thumb is the older the house, the more you get for your money.

 

One great idea to calculate the square metreage of your potential Tunbridge Wells home. Ask to view the full copy of the Energy Performance Certificate, as it has the size of the property in square metres.

 

Bigger Tunbridge Wells houses tend to cost more money to run with utility bills and council tax.

 

A final thought on size is the question of whether your family is likely to grow in the next decade? Will you have more children or is a parent coming to live with you?

 

5. The Price You Will Have To Pay For Your Next Tunbridge Wells Home

 

In the last 12 months, the Tunbridge Wells property market has remained buoyant as Tunbridge Wells people were forced to spend more time at home. Therefore they looked for more space … butwhat did they have to pay for that privilege? 

 

• 291 Tunbridge Wells detached properties have sold for an average £844,200

• 319 Tunbridge Wells semi-detached properties have sold for an average £489,500

• 231 Tunbridge Wells town house/terraced properties have sold for an average £429,700

• 195 Tunbridge Wells apartments/flats have sold for an average £323,600

 

Look at the property portals (e.g. Rightmove, Boomin, Zoopla and OnTheMarket) and search for Tunbridge Wells property that is both available and sold subject to contract. Get a feel for asking prices of the Tunbridge Wells properties that are sold subject to contract as these will give you a good idea what they roughly sold for. Again, if you are not sure, pick up the phone or drop me a line.

 

6. Bathroom(s)

 

Check the bathroom for water leaks. Do the toilets flush OK, do the taps drip? Is there any mould? And do you need more than one?

 

7. The Lounge/Living Room

 

You will undoubtedly be spending a lot of time in the lounge/living room, so it needs to meet your requirements. Do you need a dining area? Does the design and arrangement of the room suit your lifestyle (or your tenants). Will you need new furniture? Are there enough electrical sockets? What are the carpets like? That goes for all rooms.

 

8. Central Heating For Your Tunbridge WellsProperty

 

What type of central heating system is present, and does it meet the requirements of you and the home? The Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) will tell you how energy efficient the property is and how much it will cost to run. You would be amazed how few buyers ask to see the full copy of the EPC – yet you have the right to view it – always ask the estate agent for a copy or download it for free from the Government website.

 

9. The Outside

 

The outside space of your future Tunbridge Wells home is also something you need to reflect on before you start your search. What sort of back garden do you want? Do you want lowmaintenance? Do you want a bigger garden? You also need to ensure the outside of your next Tunbridge Wells home is in greatcondition. Yet, if it’s a ‘do’er-upper’, does the price allow for those works to be done?

 

10. The Loft And Cellar 

 

Another aspect to consider when buying a Tunbridge Wellsproperty is the loft (or even the cellar/basement if it has one). In both, look for water damage that could mean problems in the futurewhilst in the cellar/basement, a musty smell could be poor ventilation meaning dry damp could be an issue. Also check for insulation in the loft (the Energy Performance Certificate will tell you if it’s up to standard).

 

11. Garage/Off Road Parking Space

 

How many cars do you have in your family? Can you park them all on your drive? Visit the property during the day, the evening, and weekends to see how the parking provision changes. If the property has a garage, can it be used for something else?

 

These are my top 11 rules – yet do you have others I haven’t considered? 

 

Let me know in the comments.