An energy certificate in Spain must be applied for every property if the owner wants it to rent or sell. The application usually takes a while and it is therefore important to know that no property sale is possible without a valid energy certificate.
What is an energy certificate?
An energy certificate is a document that summarises information about the energy efficiency of a building. It is valid for 10 years after it has been issued and it contains, for example, the following values:
- Energy performance: rating of the energy performance of the building on a scale from A (very efficient) to G (very inefficient).
- Annual energy consumption: estimated energy consumption of the building per year in kilowatt hours (kWh)
- CO2 emissions: estimated annual CO2 emissions of the building in kilograms (kg)
- Building area: total area of the building
- Heating and hot water systems: type of heating of the building, e.g. gas, oil, electricity or renewable energy, as well as the type of hot water heating system
The energy certificate has been a legal requirement in Spain since 2013. This means that a certificate must be issued before a property can be sold or rented.
The certificate is usually issued by an authorised engineer or architect who inspects the property with regard to insulation, ventilation, heating, lighting, etc.
Purpose Of The Certificate
The information on energy efficiency gives the buyer of the property the possibility to estimate what energy costs will be incurred annually. The better the efficiency rating, the more interesting the property is for potential buyers.
Energy efficiency classes A – C are considered very good to good. If a building only achieves a class F – G, it is considered not energy efficient. This means that the energy consumption and thus also the CO2 emissions are very high. Certain measures can be taken to improve this condition.
Measures For Optimisation
There are a variety of measures that can help improve the energy class of a building. Among others, the following possibilities should be considered:
- Improving the insulation of walls, roofs and floors
- Installation of solar or photovoltaic systems
- Modernisation of heating and air conditioning systems
- Replacing old, leaky windows and doors
- Use of energy-saving light bulbs
- Installation of automatic controllers for heating and air conditioning systems
In general, these measures, also in combination, can help to reduce the energy demand of the building and thus improve the energy class.
Do you need an energy certificate for your property in Spain? Then we will be happy to support you and recommend a suitable specialist from our extensive network. We look forward to hearing from you. You can reach us at: info@wackershauser-immo.com or +49 176 1970 8211.
