A RECENT epistle from Real Estate Alliance leaves little doubt what side their bread is buttered on. Rushing to defend hard-pressed vendors against the cost of a Building Energy Rating cert, the agency state “vendors do not want the cost”. “In a market where they have already seen their house value drop significantly, the requirement of having a Building Energy Rating certificate simply adds further to their woes,” laments auctioneer Paul Grimes, chairman of Real Estate Alliance.

It is a bit rich to see agents rushing to denounce any extra costs being foisted on vulnerable vendors. Let’s face it, agents are well able to charge. In addition to a set fee, vendors are presented with a welter of additional charges once contracts have been exchanged. Brochures, boards, photos, stationery and even Tipp-Ex all cost money you know!

REA claims that the scheme is being met with “thundering silence” from all quarters of the market and insist that legions of assessors are “very angry and disillusioned” with the “dismal take-up of the scheme”.

Figures from Sustainable Energy Ireland paint a different picture. Almost 16,000 dwellings have been assessed so far and assessments are being logged with SEI at a rate of 300 a day. That sounds like a lot of activity. Fiona Smith of SEI says BER “empowers” consumers by giving them information about a property’s energy rating.