One million properties will have to be upgraded in our country by the end of 2032 at the latest, according to the new European Commission directive. These properties are in the lowest energy classes and at least by the above date, depending on the category of each property (whether it is a shop, apartment, etc.) they will have to be upgraded by one energy class. At the same time, the new EU directive is quite differentiated compared to the leaked draft. In particular, it removes the prohibition of legal transactions such as the lease or sale of buildings and apartments that have not been energy upgraded.

The penalties

At the same time, the penalties for those who do not proceed with the upgrades, within the margin allowed by the Directive, will be decided by the EU Member States. In any case and in addition to the penalties that each Member State will establish, an energy costly property will have a lower resale value than another. In particular, those who carry out energy upgrades will have every reason to communicate this to prospective buyers or tenants, having an advantage over properties which have not been upgraded.

It is obvious that an upgraded apartment – for example 70 m2 – in a block of flats, compared to another apartment of the same size in the same block will gain an advantage when renting or selling. This is because the tenant or tenant may pay more, but will quickly recoup the amount spent through reduced energy costs.

According to the EU plan, by 2030 all new buildings (by 2027 if their usable floor area exceeds 2,000 m2) and public buildings by 2027, will have to be zero-emission buildings. All buildings classified in the two lowest energy classes, owner-occupied or rented, are now obliged to make energy upgrades.

The draft Directive distinguishes three categories of buildings:

α) buildings and building units owned by public authorities.

(b) Buildings and non-residential buildings and building units other than those owned by public bodies.

(c) Buildings and building units of residential buildings.

Residential buildings and building units, including those owned by public bodies, shall achieve:

– After 1 January 2027, at least energy efficiency class F.

– After 1 January 2030, at least energy efficiency class E.

Residential buildings and building units shall achieve at the latest

– After 1 January 2030, at least energy efficiency class F.

– After 1 January 2033, at least energy efficiency class E.

Based on the above, shops, offices and other non-residential buildings classified in the lowest class (G) shall be upgraded to at least class E by 31.12.2026 and residential buildings by 31.12.2029. All this is averaged over 15% of the building stock.

In addition, shop and office buildings etc. classified in the next tier (F) should be upgraded by 31.12.2029 and residential buildings by 31.12.2032 to tier E. All these are also calculated at 15% of the building stock.

30% of buildings

In total, according to POMIDA, 30% of the building stock classified in the two lowest energy classes (more than one million buildings in Greece, which has 3,650,000) should be upgraded to class E by 31.12.2032. However, this is considered impossible by POMIDA, given that the transposition of these regulations into national legislation will take many years.

The President of the International Union of Property Owners (UIPI), Stratos Paradias, pointed out that the most important regulation in the final draft of the Directive is that the prohibition of legal transactions, such as the lease or sale of buildings and apartments that have not been upgraded in terms of energy efficiency – which was foreseen in the draft until yesterday – was finally withdrawn thanks to the strong opposition of UIPI in Brussels and its member organisations in all European countries, especially in the countries of the South.

Source: kathimerini.gr