Start with what you actually hold
Most portfolios do not have a reliable picture of their own EPC position. Certificates sit in different agents' files, some have expired, some were lodged against the wrong demise after a reconfiguration, and some reflect a building that has since been refurbished. Before any capital is committed, the register position for every asset should be pulled together into one schedule: address, demise, certificate reference, rating, score, lodgement date, expiry and whether the asset is currently let. That schedule alone routinely changes spending plans, because it exposes assets that are closer to the threshold than assumed and others that are already non-compliant on a live letting.
- One schedule covering every asset, demise and certificate reference
- Flag expired certificates and certificates lodged against superseded demises
- Identify assets refurbished since their certificate was produced
- Record which assets are currently let, and on what lease events
Model the near-miss assets, not just the failures
Assets already below the minimum standard are the obvious problem, but the more expensive surprises are assets at E and D. As standards tighten, those become tomorrow's failures, and the cheapest time to deal with them is during a planned refurbishment or void rather than under pressure at a lease event. Modelling matters here: a reassessment using better evidence — actual plant data, controls, lighting upgrades already installed but never documented — sometimes lifts a rating without capital works at all. Equally, an asset that scored well a decade ago under different methodology may score worse on reassessment, which is exactly the kind of thing you want to know before a rent review, not during one.
- Treat E and D rated assets as planning problems with a timeline
- Reassess where undocumented upgrades have already been carried out
- Expect methodology changes to move some ratings downwards on reassessment
- Model improvement options by cost per band rather than by measure
