Brussels, (Brussels Morning)- The average renovation cost to renovate a home in the Brussels region in a climate-friendly way is more than 45,000 euros, according to a study by the University of Ghent for technology federation Agoria. Six out of ten homeowners in Brussels can afford the necessary renovations to their own home. But the biggest stumbling block is how to motivate the owners of the large share of rental housing to invest.
Renovating all Brussels homes: how much does it cost and which owners can afford it? That was the approach of the study that Johan Albrecht, professor of environmental economics at Ghent University, carried out in the three regions at the request of technology federation Agoria.
After all, the EU has set itself a number of climate targets to reduce emissions of harmful greenhouse gases worldwide. Making our housing stock climate neutral by 2050 is part of this.
According to BRUZZ, to renovate all Brussels homes to a minimum energy label C+, mandatory in the EU from 2050, Brussels residents would have to invest around 15 billion euros. That is why the Brussels government launched the Renolution renovation program in the spring of 2021, with a budget of 350 million euros. It also decided, step by step, to introduce a renovation obligation from 2030 .
More than in Flanders and Wallonia
The study by Ghent University shows that in Brussels about 60 percent of current owners can afford a climate and comfort renovation. That is a lot more than in Wallonia and Flanders.
At first glance, this seems surprising, since the average disposable income in the Brussels region is the lowest in the country. “Owners in Brussels often already need a relatively high income to be able to buy a home,” says environmental economist Albrecht. “In addition, the renovation cost is also lower on average, given that almost two thirds of the Brussels housing market consists of (smaller) apartments.”
More is rented than in Flanders and Wallonia: about 60 percent of the Brussels real estate market consists of rental properties. That is why Albrecht also looked at the financing capacity of Brussels owners to undertake a possible second home renovation.
The financing capacity is then immediately 20 percent lower, at 44 percent. “The majority of Brussels homeowners can afford the climate renovation of their own family home, but not that of a possible second rental home,” concludes René Konings, manager of Agoria Brussels. “For landlords who can, the challenge is mainly how to motivate them to renovate. A successful climate transition will therefore not only depend on climate policy, but also to a large extent on the choices made within housing policy.”
First steps towards renovation obligation
The Brussels-Capital Region has a relatively large number of old houses that are anything but energy efficient. Seven out of ten homes date from before 1945, less than 1 percent of the homes are less than ten years old. With an annual renovation rate of less than 1 percent, the improvement of the Brussels building stock is going much too slowly, according to Agoria.
By 2025, every owner of a Brussels home must have an EPB certificate drawn up, a kind of energy report for your home. “Brussels has taken the first steps to introduce a renovation obligation on the basis of minimum EPB labels by 2030 when it sells,” says Charlotte van de Water, project manager Climate Neutral Building at Agoria.
“This is an important step in encouraging the 40 percent of homeowners who can afford to renovate their investment property to actually do so and thus kick-start climate renovation in the rental market. However, measures will be needed to ensure that access to the housing market remains guaranteed for everyone.”
‘More social housing’
“Depending on the vision on housing policy, several options are possible,” says Van de Water. “It is important that the pressure on the rental market remains manageable by balancing supply and demand. This can be done, for example, by expanding the supply of social housing, or a reward system for owners who renovate sufficiently, or tax measures such as lowering the rent. registration rights.”
“The climate policy through renovation obligation will have a positive impact on the value of real estate. Owners who invest in energy efficiency and more comfort, invest in increasing the value of their home. That is why it is important to start collecting information about the climate performance of your home and drawing up a plan today,” says Konings. “The government can reward Brussels residents who take this step with financial incentives.”
“Anyone who continues to live in an E or F home (or continues to rent out that home, ed.) without taking action will likely experience a decline in value. Moreover, many households pay far too much through their energy bill for an old house in poor (energy) condition,” says Albrecht.
“We are currently at a crossroads; if we do nothing, tenants will be confronted with higher rents due to inflation, without releasing CO2 savings,” explains Van de Water. “Climate renovation can increase the value of the home, reduce energy costs, while achieving climate goals. However, a targeted housing policy is needed to ensure that someone takes the step to provide the necessary pre-investment.”
It is therefore up to the government to adjust the market dynamics so that renovation, rental, sale and heating will be done differently in the next thirty years, say the authors of the study.
