A heating or air conditioning bill estimated at 400 euros per year and which turns into 1000 euros for the year if the tenant does not want to shiver in winter or cook in summer in his accommodation: in principle, this is no longer possible.
Indeed, since 1er July, a new energy performance diagnosis (DPE) came into effect, and becomes enforceable against the owner. “This document was previously transmitted for information only, but it is now part of the contract with the tenant, in the same way as other real estate diagnoses, such as lead or asbestos”, says Stanislas Couteaux, founder of Book-a-Flat, specialist in rental management.
The lessor’s liability may be engaged and, in theory, the tenant could therefore negotiate a rent reduction with the landlord, if he ends up with an incorrect diagnosis.
This document, which tenants read absent-mindedly, or not at all, and which owners sometimes neglected to transmit, should therefore take on special importance. “It’s a profound change, even if we don’t really know how tenants and lessors will take advantage of this novelty”, adds Eric Allouche, executive director of the Era Immobilier network. This device is, in fact, recent: it results from the ELAN law (evolution of housing, development and digital) of 23 November 2018 and the tools to establish this new DPE are gradually being put in place.
A more reliable diagnosis
The importance of this document implies that its reliability is indisputable, which was not always the case. The new methods of calculating the DPE should contribute to this. The “conventional housing consumption calculation” method, known as “3CL”, based on the performance of the housing construction materials, becomes mandatory and replaces the diagnosis based on the housing energy bills, which vary according to the occupant behavior.
The new DPE now includes all energy expenditure for housing, even lighting, and also takes into account greenhouse gas emissions.
The tenant will be informed of all these elements from the search for his accommodation, reading the classifieds. From 1er January 2022, real estate advertisements will indicate the carbon label, i.e. the amount of greenhouse gases emitted by the rented accommodation. However, in a market where housing is scarce, it is not certain that tenants pay much attention to this factor.
On the other hand, they will not fail to be interested in another figure: the announcements will have to indicate the estimated amount of the annual expenditure of energy for a standard use. The tenant will thus know how much he will have to pay over the year and will be able to foresee it in his budget.
A substantial lease
The content of the lease will also be expanded: the standard contract must therefore include the estimated amount of annual energy expenditure by including all devices in the calculation, from heating, air conditioning, domestic hot water production, ‘lighting, ventilation devices or water heaters.
In the case of collective heating, the lease must specify the methods for distributing the tenant’s consumption. Housing rented bare or furnished as a main residence is affected by these new measures.
One downside, however: the recommendations provided to the owner as part of the DPE by the diagnostician are not opposable to the owner.
For example, if the DPE advises to insulate the roof of the dwelling or to change the windows, the tenant cannot require his landlord to carry out the work. And, for current leases, DPEs completed before 1er July are not opposable. They will become so at the end of their validity: the DPE carried out before December 31, 2017 are valid until December 31, 2022, and those carried out before June 30, 2021 are valid until December 31, 2024. From 2025, only new DPE will be in circulation.