3 Cost-Effective Ways Landlords Can Battle Rising Energy Prices

If you’re a landlord, it’s important to not let your occupancy rate take a dip or let your profit margins go for a toss, for any reason. Needless to say, it isn’t a viable business to manage a property that doesn’t generate enough income for you or has no tenants. However, with the soaring energy prices, that’s a big concern for many landlords, especially those who are already battling the tough economic climate.

Further, let’s share some good news and some bad news. Here’s the bad news: energy bills are expected to go up this April onwards, by 50% or more. The good news: you can’t control the rising energy prices, but you can certainly reduce energy consumption.

In this article, we will share 3 effective ways for landlords to tackle the issue of rising energy prices by saving more energy. But first, let’s understand why this is something that needs to be prioritised.

Why Landlords Need to Make Saving Energy a Top Priority

Reason #1: Seeing their energy bills soar up, your tenants may start looking for properties where they can maintain their standard of living without spending extra money every month. If you don’t want your property to remain vacant, it’s best to make your property energy efficient and not give your tenants such a reason to move out.

Reason #2: Tenants can’t help but appreciate the value of living in an energy-efficient property. They are also more likely to stay for the long term, even if you charge extra for the energy-efficient tag, because they will eventually save up on the energy costs and expenditures on heating. However, tenants wouldn’t appreciate the rising energy bills, if they are paying out of pocket for energy bills, as it would hurt their cost of living.

Reason #3: If you are paying the energy bills, reducing energy consumption means more savings for you. You can also lower the amount you rent your units for and pass on the savings to the tenants, making it an attractive deal for them.

Reason #4: It has never been more important to save energy, not just for your bank balance but also for the environment. Making your building more sustainable and eco-friendly can attract more tenants, as there’s a growing concern about global warming and everyone appreciates the effort you’ve put into supporting the cause.

3 Cost-Effective Ways Landlords Can Battle Rising Energy Prices

It may prove difficult to reduce your energy bills by just using energy-efficient appliances and lighting. In order to see a drastic reduction in your energy bills, you should consider the following solutions.

1. Get your loft insulation upgraded

Unless you have insulated your building’s loft and cavity walls, heat will always leak out. As a result, you will need to spend more on heating. By upgrading your loft insulation, you can avoid this heat from getting lost through the uninsulated walls or loft space and save money on fuel and electricity that goes towards heating the property. It’s a worthwhile investment considering the improvement in energy efficiency, the long 40-year lifetime of loft insulation, and the low cost of this solution.

2. Switch from Traditional Heating to Heat Pumps

Perhaps a big chunk of expenses goes towards fuel and electricity to keep your property warm. But it’s possible to save on these expenses by switching from traditional heating solutions to heat pumps that rely on renewable sources of energy, such as the air, water or ground for extracting heat. Heat pumps work similar to a fridge, but just in reverse, by moving heat from outside the property to inside. According to heat pump manufacturers, if installed correctly, heat pumps can provide up to three units of heat energy in return for every single unit they consume. Heat pumps are also environmentally friendly, which is why the government is providing a £5,000 subsidy to homeowners who decide to replace their gas boilers to install heat pumps, under their Boiler Upgrade Scheme, starting from April 2022.

3. Invest in solar panels

Even though it may seem like a big investment initially, it’s a good idea to install solar panels in your property to create your own supply of renewable energy. It’s a popular choice of homeowners who want to cut their energy bills while also doing their bit in reducing carbon emissions. Considering the short payback period and plenty of savings in the long term, solar panels are a worthwhile investment.

Final Thoughts

Despite the competitive marketplace, there’s still a good amount of money to be made in the housing sector. However, cutting corners by delaying maintenance work can prove more costly in the long term. This is why landlords should make good use of the support packages and benefits being offered by the government for making their properties more energy-efficient and keeping their tenants happy.