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New build home buyers are saving over £500 million a year in energy bills, as well as collectively reducing carbon emissions by over 500,000 tonnes. On average, buyers of new homes save over £2,000 on household bills per property each year, equivalent to £173 a month. For buyers of houses, as opposed to flats the savings are even greater at £220 per month.
Despite Government action, costs are still dauntingly high. New build home buyers are also doing their bit to reduce carbon emissions, with older properties generating nearly three times as much carbon as the equivalent new build. As the pressure on the climate increases, and with residential property in the UK accounting for over 20% of the country’s emissions, the positive impact that new build homes can have on our progress towards net zero is vital. As home builders work towards the Future Homes Standard, which is due to come into force in 2025, the energy efficiency of new homes will become even greater in the years ahead.
Looking at the average cost per kWh of gas and electricity combined, based on the prices set by the Government’s Energy Price Guarantee for bills from October 2022, the bills and savings that new build homeowners will see each year are vast.
On average, the new build properties in this dataset will cost £1,500.43 to run a year, just 42% of the cost of an average existing dwelling, which would be to £3,567.44 per year based on most recent energy prices. This means that buyers of new build properties in the year to June 2022 are collectively saving over £500 million a year in running costs compared to if they had bought an equivalent older property. However, with the energy price cap now set to be reviewed every three months and further increases predicted for January 2023, these bills, and therefore the savings that more energy efficient properties see, are likely to soar.
While the financial benefits are reason enough to buy a new home, the appeal becomes stronger still when the environmental aspects are also taken into account. Due to the decreased energy usage as outlined earlier in this report as well as new technologies, improved industry knowledge and low carbon heating, new builds are constructed to emit significantly less carbon dioxide each year. For homes registered with an EPC in the year to June 2022, the average new build emitted 1.4 tonnes of carbon over the year, whilst the average existing dwelling emitted 3.7 tonnes. The breakdown of carbon emissions by type of home can be seen in the graph below, with new builds emitting significantly less across all property types.
*Based on the average energy saving over 10 years. Source What a save HBF Report