Singing Pig

Just wondering if anyone else had completed the DEA course,  Alot of people got stung by getting qualified to soon, should be a big market for them next year when commercials come into it and even more so when lettings have to have one in October.

Cheers

John 

Hi john

 I would be interested to know any details regarding the logistics of the course. How much it costs etc. how long it takes.

And of course the big question, how much do you expect to make as an income once qualified.

Many regards

Lloydy

Hi Clottie / Lloydy

The energy assessment for lettings will be coming in Oct 2008,  there was quite a bit of discussion about this as there was a few landlords on the course.  Nobody knows for sure, even the government (surprise surprise)  how long the assessment will last for.  Some are of the opinion that a DEA (Domestic energy assessment) will be required every time the property is let, others say the DEA will last for 10 years, so in that respect it is all up in the air,  however from what I've been told all properties that are already let will require the DEA from Oct.  New builds and Commercial premises from April 2008. 

Just a bit of background for anyone considering the course.  The government introduced the HIPS pack last year.  (and made a right *** up of it)  anyway the DEA part of the HIPS pack is the core part as that is an EU directive, there's no getting away from that.  Everything else, the searches etc. was then packaged around this.  If the government changes and decides to do something else is really irrelavant to the inspectors as anything else will always revolve around the DEA.

The company I did my course through was a company called Bluebox   they do a pay as you learn scheme or you can go the full hog and pay for all the courses there and then.  For the DEA course it will cost £1300 + VAT for the course, once that is completed you have the exams to sit which again will cost £450 vat exempt.  The course lasts over several months.  You will do 5 days in total classroom work.  1 day then 2 week break (home study) another day then 2 week break, one more day then 2 week break.  These 3 days are covered by bluebox.  You will then have a 2 day session by Elmhurst Energy this company provides the software that is used. You will have to do another course to do commercials, I think though we are only talking about small shops etc.  Big factories and public building will be left to already qualified surveyors as it is a very complicated process.  If you go through all the training, you will  be qualified to survey houses for mortgage purposes.

How much can you earn, Mmm,  depends how much you want to put into it.  I am just opening a new estate agency shop (new franchise group) so I intend integrating it with that,   There are some people doing it part time.  I think though from what I'm hearing if you give a good service, don't pick and choose which ones you do.  i.e. don't just take the easy ones.  I think you could do maybe 1,2 or maybe  3 a day @ £70-£100 per shot, takes about 1 hour on site. It will cost you £6 per DEA to get the report from Elmhurst once you've input all the data, (this £6 includes you liability insurance)  Introduce yourself to all E.A's and be self employed or work for one of the bigger companies specialising in DEA's, combine both ? several ways of going about it and I don't know how much of a slice the bigger boys give you if you work through them.

Hope this helps

John 

john many thanks for all your time in writing that.  your explanation as to how to become a DEA is very useful. From the landlords point of view, what do we have to produce, how much will it cost and do you have a link to government legislation for the requirement.  Up to now my landlords association have not published anything i can find to explain it all from our perspective.

edited  -  i just looked on the communities.gov.uk  site and found the following utter utter gem in the FAQ

 7. Will Energy Performance Certificates be required for rented accomodation?
Yes. The EU requires that Energy Performance Certificates will need to be provided for all buildings when they are constructed, sold or rented.

10. What happens if my home gets a low rating?
This simply indicates your home could be more energy efficient. During the inspection a number of recommendations to improve the energy efficiency will be identified. Implementation of these could not only increase your rating and reduce carbon emmissions but also save money on energy bills. It is up to you whether you implement the recommendations or not.

this website also tells me it might cost me £100 to get a certificate  - upon which i dont need to take any action to improve things -  yet another tax on landlords. 

What an insane  load of old cobblers 

the site also says

An Energy Performance Certificate is only required when a building is constructed, sold or rented out. An EPC is valid for 10 years, except for sales of homes which are subject to the Home Information Pack Regulations 2007, where a Home Information Pack (HIP) is required. In these cases an EPC must be no more than 12 months old when the property is first marketed.

Landlords dont have to show prospective tenants their certificate if they think they are not suitable tenants  -  thank goodness for small mercies - now where is that smiley for irony    ??

maybe that was anger  - no matter !!

Hi Clottie,

The legislation is meant to  be within the EPB regulations (Energy Performance of Buildings) I can't see it in there, however I have found a goverment guidance document which is here

Hope this helps you out.  It is still up in the air as to how often they will be required after the initial inspection has been done.

Cheers

John