Is there anything that landlords can be doing to play their part in this major step towards a greener future? Boosting your bottom line.

As well as a positive boost for the environment, making green tweaks to your lettings portfolio can also have a really great impact on your pocket too. More and more tenants are looking at the green credentials of a property as a very real concern, and they play a big part in choosing their perfect home.

Simple changes

Most modern properties are built with energy efficiency in mind. This is great news for landlords and tenants, more energy efficiency benefits often mean far lower bills! However, if you have a property that was built before the mid-1980s, it is likely that energy efficiency wasn’t at the top of the agenda… Either way, there are plenty of things owners of properties both new and older can consider to boost their home’s output:

• Insulation: Most new properties will be well insulated, but older properties may be lacking a little, and this can make a real difference. Effectively insulating a property, in areas such as the loft and cavity walls, is like wrapping the entire building in a cosy coat, and traps heat in the home – saving your tenant a fortune on heating bills and really helping cut down on the overall energy usage.
• Double glazing: Windows with wind whistling through aren’t going to win any awards for efficiency, nor are they going to be popular with chilly tenants on a winters evening. If your property is in a conservation area, and covered by an Article 4 directive, you may be unable to upgrade to double glazing, your local council will be able to advise.
• Eco-lightbulbs: Sometimes the smallest things can be the brightest ideas! Making the change to LED lightbulbs throughout your rental properties can make a real difference to the energy output. Admittedly, they’re fairly pricy to buy compared to a standard bulb, but they last around 21 times longer (no more call outs for blown bulbs in hard-to-reach places!) and are brighter, and more efficient.
• Top rated appliances: As well as considering light, it’s worth considering the appliances you supply. Appliances are graded A to G on the efficiency scale, with A being the best and G the worst. Fridges and freezers have three extra ratings, A+, A++ and A+++, and washing machines have three efficiency ratings for energy consumption, washing and spinning (you’d be looking for an AAA).
• Repair, don’t replace: Even the most efficient white goods can have a wobble, and if you find yourself on the receiving end of a breakdown call, before rushing to the shops to replace the appliance, consider if it can be repaired first. Not only will it save your wallet, it’ll help do wonders for the environment too. 
• Low-flush toilets: With every visit to the loo using up to 12 litres of water, the average fixture is literally flushing good environmental sense away! Fitting low-flush toilets could save up to 60% of the water per use. An upgrade to the old-fashioned hack of a brick in the cistern, modern low-flush systems are a savvy way of saving water and reducing energy usage.
• Water-saving shower heads: Everyone loves a long hot shower after a hard day, but with a power shower using up to 22 litres of water every minute, this isn’t the most economical form of relaxation! Water-saving shower heads can protect the power, but stop water wastage running down the drain.
• Thermostatic radiator valves: Not only a great option for environmental efficiency but also one for household harmony, thermostatic radiator valves help moderate the temperature of each radiator when the individual room temperature is reached. Perfect for when you don’t want to spend money heating an unused room, or if you have a heat lover in one bedroom, and a chilly sleeper in another. At £10 to £20 per valve, it’s a small cost for a big difference.
• Bleed your radiators: Perfectly balanced radiators are no use if the system isn’t working efficiently. Regular maintenance to ensure that there are no airlocks in the system causing blockages is vital. Make sure to schedule maintenance in the summer months, so as not to receive a cool reception from your tenants!
• Block up chimneys: Original fireplaces can look great, and be a real selling point. However, leaving your chimney unchecked can leave your property opens to more than just Santa! If the fireplace is unused, a simple method is to fit a chimney balloon, inserted up the chimney and inflated, blocking cold draughts, rain and debris.

Here at Kronos Estates, we work with digital platforms – a great asset in the current situation! Cutting down on your carbon footprint is one of the biggest ways an individual can help do their bit. To let a property the traditional way, there’s plenty of to-ing and fro-ing, meaning that footprint soon ramps up! Journeys to and from your agency to sign contracts, process paperwork, oversee deposits, and that’s before you consider numerous viewings. Here, everything is carried out digitally, with very few journeys necessary.  Clever bespoke technology can be used at every stage to simplify and cut down on unnecessary people movement.

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