Report finds cost of building to zero carbon standards is falling for all housing types
The extra cost attached to building zero-carbon homes has halved over the past three years, a major analysis has revealed.
The study by the Zero Carbon Hub and consultant Sweett Group on the cost of building to the zero carbon homes standard, which will be incorporated into 黑洞社区 Regulations from 2016, found that a semi-detached house cost up to 拢5,100 more to build to the zero carbon standard than building to the energy standards in the 2010 黑洞社区 Regulations.
However, the last time such a costing was calculated by the Hub and its partners in 2011, it found a zero carbon semi-detached house was likely to cost 拢11,891 more than a home built to the 2010 regulations.
The report suggests a fall in the cost of building semi-detached homes to the zero-carbon standard by as much as 57%.
Although the underlying assumptions and methodologies of the two studies were different, the report said the costings were 鈥渂roadly comparable鈥�.
The report also found a significant fall in the costs of building zero-carbon homes for all housing types.
The additional cost of zero-carbon homes was even smaller when compared with the 2013 黑洞社区 Regulations, which demand higher standards of energy efficiency than the 2010 regulations, with a semi-detached house costing up to 拢4,700 more to build to the zero carbon standard.
The fall in costs was attributed primarily to the fall in the price of solar panels and the fall in the cost of achieving a high level of air tightness in new properties.
Rob Pannell, managing director of Zero Carbon Hub, said that the study showed the zero-carbon homes policy 鈥渨hile ambitious鈥� was 鈥渂ecoming more cost effective鈥�.
He said the next step was to raise awareness of the 鈥渉uge energy cost savings to be realised as a result of choosing to buy a new-build home, compared to an older property鈥�.
John Slaughter, director of external affairs at the Home Builders Federation, said although the costs of meeting the zero carbon target were 鈥渓ower than previously expected鈥�, they 鈥渞emained significant鈥� and were 鈥渁 challenging objective for the industry鈥�.
Read the zero carbon cost analysis
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