The proportion of families willing to make sustainability-related home renovations has decreased for the first time since the tracker’s start in March 2021, according to NatWest’s most recent quarterly edition of their Greener Homes Attitudes Tracker, which was blamed on costs.
Between January 19 and March 13, 2023, a survey of 4,500 UK individuals was conducted to learn more about their consumption habits and environmental perspectives. It was discovered that from 22% in Q4 2022 to 21% in Q1 2023, the percentage of households expecting to make sustainable changes to their properties had decreased. The cost-of-living crisis was blamed for this decline; 71% of homeowners indicated they wouldn’t. claiming that cost was the primary obstacle to improvement
Additionally, homebuyers were placing less weight on an upcoming property’s Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) rating, with those who said it is a’very significant’ element declining two percentage points to 39%, compared with 41% in Q4 2022. This was a result of tighter budgets. A similar pattern was found in the weekly shop; fewer people reported that they thought about the environment when buying food, decreasing 4 percentage points from 35% in Q4 2022 to 31% in Q1 2023. Additionally, there was a rise in the number of people who claimed to be reducing their home’s energy use, with 48% of customers reporting that they had lowered their thermostat in an effort to lower their expenses, a quarter-over-quarter increase. from 43% the year before.
Notably, measures like the installation of triple glazing, solar panels, and EV charging points, which may be perceived as more expensive and/or disruptive during installation, show there is demand for them from respondents, but on a longer time scale, suggesting a wait and see approach in terms of finances and overall cost.Although it is clear that homeowners want to make adjustments that will help them save money and stop climate change, Lloyd Cochrane of NatWest said that “the costs of making these changes remain a barrier for homeowners.” “These insights have been incorporated into our work across industries, through public-private partnerships, and our engagement with the Government to propose policies that can work positively to support consumers improve the energy efficiency of their homes,” he continued. It is key that we support customers financially, so they are not held back from boosting demand for energy efficient products and services.”
