A huge survey involving analysis of over 14,000 properties suggests an urgent need for the next government to help private rental sector properties become greener. 

Rightmove, which conducted the research, says at least 18m homes have an EPC rating of D or below. This takes into account both homes that have an EPC, and those that have never had one because they haven’t been sold or rented out since EPCs were introduced. 

It equates to 55% of all UK housing stock.  

Rightmove’s Energy Bills Tracker shows that the difference in bills between homes with higher and lower energy efficiency ratings can be significant.  

The analysis of government data shows that the average energy bill of a three-bedroom house with an EPC rating of F is £4,431 per year, compared with £1,669 for the same sized house with an EPC rating of C – that’s a difference of £2,762. 

Rightmove says green improvements, if suitable for the home, could include window upgrades, roof or floor insulation, installing solar panels or moving from a gas boiler to a heat pump. 

A new Rightmove study of 14,091 properties, conducted in May, shows that the biggest motivator for someone to make green changes to their home is if it could reduce their energy bills. 

The study also found that 87% of renters and 83% of home-owners believe more action should be taken to help people make their homes greener.  

Rightmove says whichever party wins the election to prioritise making green home incentives available to as many homes as possible, as soon as possible, to help the millions of homes that need to be improved. 

Tim Bannister, Rightmove’s property expert, says: “While it’s a start to see some green support proposed in the party manifestos, there’s a big job to be done to address the widescale issue that at least 18 million UK homes need to be improved. 

“Many home-owners and landlords need urgent access to schemes that enable them to make these improvements, which could help with huge savings on energy bills. Each home requires different improvements and the upfront costs are a huge barrier to change. Without more help, many home-owners and tenants will continue to live in high-carbon emitting homes with high energy costs.”