Owners, here’s what’s changing for you from July 1st

Capital Video: DPE: owners, here is what changes for you from July 1st

From July 1, the score of your energy performance diagnosis (DPE) could automatically change. A decree published last April, and applicable from July 1, modifies the method of calculating the DPE for small-area housing. To be completely precise, this concerns housing of less than 40 square meters. “The government’s objective was to review the calculation methods, which were unfavorable to small housing, which were therefore more easily qualified as thermal sieves.», recontextualizes Pierre-François Morin, the director of energy renovation at Hello Watt.

The executive had in fact noted biases in the energy performance ratings of the smallest homes. In 2022, a study by the National Energy Renovation Observatory showed that 34% of homes of less than 30 square meters had an F or G label, compared to only 13% of homes of more than 100 square meters.

Around 140,000 thermal strainers affected

Thus, tens of thousands of homes could gain an energy performance class… and in particular the worst-rated properties, without the owner having to undertake any renovation work. According to government estimates, around 140,000 small homes will automatically be removed from the thermal sieve status – rated F or G on the DPE – and obtain a higher rating.

«With the changes in calculation method, the smaller the dwellings, the more likely they are to gain an energy performance rating. Properties of less than 30 square meters in particular», explains Guislain Théry, research and development manager for Exim, a specialist in real estate diagnostics in France. On the other hand, under no circumstances will the change in calculation method be able to degrade the current grade of your DPE, explains the expert.

Measurable consequences from next January

As a reminder, carrying out an EPC is essential to be able to rent a home. From January 1, 2025, in fact, all G-rated homes will be prohibited from renting, then all F-rated homes from 2028. A major issue, therefore, for landlords who rent apartments with a surface area often less than 40 square meters, to students or young workers. Furthermore, it should also be remembered that the EPC is now mandatory for all real estate sales.

Eligibility for certain MaPrimeRénov’ energy renovation aid “in single gesture” – as opposed to more ambitious renovations which combine several gestures of insulation, change of heating mode or even ventilation – will also be conditional on the score of energy performance from next year. “As of January 1, 2025, if your accommodation is rated F or G, only aid for overall renovations of your accommodation may be paid.“, recalls Audrey Zermati, strategy director of the energy renovation specialist Effy. A change in rating could therefore give you access to certain aid.

A certificate to download to justify the change of grade

To find out if your home gains an energy class or not, it’s quite simple. Simply go to the simulator of the Environment and Energy Management Agency (ADEME). You will need to have the 13-digit number assigned to your energy performance diagnosis. The simulator will then tell you whether or not your DPE is affected by a change in energy rating. If yes, you will only have to download the certificate of change of grade, which you will then have to attach to your own DPE to be able to justify this change of grade.

As a reminder, the validity period of a diagnosis is 10 years. But be careful: downloading a certificate does not modify the initial validity period of the document. “Even if you publish the certificate in 2024, a diagnosis established in 2021 only remains valid until 2031“, supports Guislain Théry. Finally, let us recall that due to recent changes in the method of calculating the DPE, diagnostics carried out between January 1, 2018 and January 1, 2020 will become invalid from January 1, 2025. In this case, do not download a certificate: instead, have a new DPE carried out, which will remain valid next January.