Read about what a group of senior stakeholders from across the lending and surveying sector had to say at our recent conference. The road to net zero is reshaping the UK property landscape - and the Buy-to-Let (BTL) sector sits right in the middle of this shift.
At a recent industry conference hosted at Bletchley Park, senior leaders from across the lending and surveying sectors came together to discuss market readiness for forthcoming regulations such as the Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards.
What emerged was a striking picture: a sector facing significant pressure to adapt, with a need for policy clarity, data infrastructure, and financial support.
The 2030 Deadline: A Sector Under Pressure
By 2030, BTL properties in England and Wales will be required to achieve an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) rating of C or above (unless exemptions apply such as listed status). Non-compliant landlords could face fines of up to £30,000 per property.
While the policy intent - reducing emissions, easing fuel poverty, and improving housing quality - is widely supported, execution remains a challenge. Government modelling puts the average cost of retrofitting at £6,500 per property, but of course this means some landlords face costs much higher.
This potential cost obligation is compelling smaller landlords to consider their portfolio or even whether they should stay in the market. Larger, better-capitalised landlords are beginning to upgrade or sell off poorly rated properties. Meanwhile, smaller landlords often lack the resources or information to take meaningful action, increasing the risk of a two-speed market that could impact rental supply and affordability.
Financial Solutions: Still Out of Reach
One of the most urgent issues raised at the conference was the paucity of funding. While green mortgage products exist, they reward homes already rated EPC A or B. There is a noticeable absence of financial products aimed at enabling retrofit work for homes currently below standard.
Landlords and brokers are calling for mortgage products designed to fund energy upgrades and a package of fiscal incentives, from tax rebates to council tax incentives, to support the transition. However, with public finances stretched and policy timelines uncertain, little concrete support has emerged so far.
Lenders, meanwhile, are under growing pressure from regulators to manage climate-related risk. UK lenders must now report on the energy performance of their portfolios and quantify their exposure to climate risk under the Climate-related Financial Disclosure (CFD) regime. The Bank of England has also moved to exclude mortgages with EPC ratings below E from its collateral framework (unless exemptions apply), effective from 2024.
This has forced lenders to reassess their BTL books, requiring large-scale EPC data collection and analysis. And here lies another challenge…
The EPC Conundrum: Outdated, Inconsistent, Incomplete
A major theme throughout the day was the reliability and stagnancy of current EPC data. On average, EPCs are updated just once every seven years - typically when a property is sold. This means lenders and policymakers are often making decisions based on outdated and potentially incorrect information.
Participants called for a more dynamic and granular approach, and welcome the development of the Home Energy Model. Planned for introduction for existing homes in 2026, the Home Energy Model will be better able to model smart technologies, heat pump performance, energy storage and load-shifting.
Surveyor Shortages and Skills Gaps
When landlords get to the point where they decide a retrofit programme is the best course of action, the lenders feel the capacity to support them is limited. They were concerned the UK may not have enough trained surveyors to meet the demand arising from MEES. Most surveyors do not routinely include retrofit advice in property assessments. This can be down to time constraints, client expectations, or lack of training.
There is also caution around the use of AI or digital solutions within the surveying profession, even though these could offer efficiency and scalability. Delegates were quite clear; without investment in recruitment and training, adoption of emerging technologies, and availability of clear professional standards, the sector risks becoming a bottleneck in the retrofit transition.
Regulatory Flux: Risk of Paralysis
Alongside EPC reform, the upcoming Renters’ Rights Bill will introduce new obligations, including the extension of the ‘Decent Homes Standard’ to the private rented sector. While this may eventually help improve compliance and transparency, many stakeholders worry that uncertainty and policy slippage will delay action.
A number of attendees commented on a perceived lack of coordination between regulatory levers. As one put it, “the hotchpotch of rules means people are just sitting on their hands waiting for clarity.” To some extent this has been addressed by the launch of aligned consultations on Decent Homes and Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards in the social rented sector, and Cotality looks forward to working with lenders to understand the implications for the private rented sector.
Where do we go from here?
The Bletchley conference made it clear: no single stakeholder can solve this alone. What’s needed is a coordinated, system-wide approach - linking government, lenders, landlords, surveyors, and tech providers—with a shared strategy, credible data, and incentives aligned to outcomes.
Key actions that emerged include:
- Clearer, stable regulation: Timelines, thresholds, and enforcement mechanisms should be set with enough notice to allow stakeholders to plan and act.
- Better data infrastructure: More detailed energy performance data is required for lenders, landlords, local authorities and policymakers to make informed decisions.
- Accessible finance: Retrofit-specific mortgage products and fiscal incentives will need be made available to support transition at scale.
- Upskilling the profession: Surveyors and other property professionals need the resource, training and tools to embed retrofit considerations into routine practice.
Above all, there is a need to reframe the retrofit challenge not as a burden, but as an opportunity—to improve housing quality, reduce energy bills, and future-proof the UK’s property market.
As one attendee succinctly asked: “What’s the cost of doing nothing?” It’s a question every stakeholder in the sector must now reckon with.
