So its now April - the months of 2011 have flown by so far and hopefully work will continue to get busier.
During the month of March I added to my services with Fresh as a Daisy - its an end of tenancy cleaning company that makes sure a property is properly cleaned, oven gleaming, windows smear free and smelling fresh before new tenants move in. One of the reasons for this is I am trying to save estate/letting agents and landlords time - instead of 3 phone calls to get the EPC,inventory and cleaning sorted they now have to make only 1 call (to me!) and its all organised leaving them to concentrate on obtaining new tenants/new sales etc which is of great importance in this current financial climate.
I have noticed though that the DEAs that seem to be surviving the recession are the ones that (apart from making sure they are professional, up to date and have high standards of customer care and quick turnaround times) have added additional services to their business. Its definately a case of making sure that not all your eggs are in one basket.
Have seen some promising news though today via the EAT blog -
Before I forget the Draw an ECO house competition ends this friday so please if you have 2 minutes spare log on to Hazel Green Associates on Facebook and have a look at the fantastic drawings the children have done! They had some wonderful ideas.
Showing posts with label DEAs. Show all posts
Showing posts with label DEAs. Show all posts
Tuesday, 5 April 2011
Wednesday, 16 February 2011
Information highway/Social networking
I was finally (having a spare 5 minutes) investigating twitter and how it works properly - and I found where people had "retweeted" me or tweeted me a message. So firstly apologies to those who have done that - I wasn't ignoring anyone, I was just ignorant of how twitter worked.
While I was checking out twitter I found an interesting blog - worthwhile to follow: http://www.dailygreennews.co.uk
So while I was reading the above blog I found the link to Estate Agent today where there is a lovely story about how there is another wonderful course coming out for Energy Assessors to take, although there is no promise of any work and the Government have not fully committed to anything as yet - am sure everyone can see where that story is going! http://www.estateagenttoday.co.uk/news_features/Here-we-go-again%3A-DEAs-asked-to-part-with-more-money
"The Building Research Establishment would like a cool £900 off them for a place on a three-day training course that might (though it’s not guaranteed) give them some kind of qualification to become one of those new Green Deal jobbies, a Home Energy Adviser. Steer well clear, is our advice. As the BRE itself admits, the Government hasn’t even launched an official scheme yet, so “BRE cannot provide an official qualification”.Mystifyingly, it adds: “However, we are very confident that this course provides all the information you will need to carry out detailed and practical home energy surveys and offer comprehensive advice.”"
So we are still in a fairly quiet market, still seeing new DEAs emerge from new training courses (advertised as the opportunity to earn £40k plus!???) and then there is this news - suppose we are going to see more training providers taking this opportunity!
DEAs really need to be fighting their own corner on this, I have repeatedly said it over the past 3 plus years but we all need to stand together and get something sorted with regards to our own industry before it gets any worse.
While I was checking out twitter I found an interesting blog - worthwhile to follow: http://www.dailygreennews.co.uk
So while I was reading the above blog I found the link to Estate Agent today where there is a lovely story about how there is another wonderful course coming out for Energy Assessors to take, although there is no promise of any work and the Government have not fully committed to anything as yet - am sure everyone can see where that story is going! http://www.estateagenttoday.co.uk/news_features/Here-we-go-again%3A-DEAs-asked-to-part-with-more-money
"The Building Research Establishment would like a cool £900 off them for a place on a three-day training course that might (though it’s not guaranteed) give them some kind of qualification to become one of those new Green Deal jobbies, a Home Energy Adviser. Steer well clear, is our advice. As the BRE itself admits, the Government hasn’t even launched an official scheme yet, so “BRE cannot provide an official qualification”.Mystifyingly, it adds: “However, we are very confident that this course provides all the information you will need to carry out detailed and practical home energy surveys and offer comprehensive advice.”"
So we are still in a fairly quiet market, still seeing new DEAs emerge from new training courses (advertised as the opportunity to earn £40k plus!???) and then there is this news - suppose we are going to see more training providers taking this opportunity!
DEAs really need to be fighting their own corner on this, I have repeatedly said it over the past 3 plus years but we all need to stand together and get something sorted with regards to our own industry before it gets any worse.
Wednesday, 26 January 2011
check, check and check again
I cannot believe it is only ten past 7! All 3 children are washed, fed and dressed and we don't have to leave for school until just after 8, the cleaning is done and my invoicing for my work today is already done. Am in super organised mode today.
I was outside a moment ago (letting the dogs down the garden) and its trying to snow?! I love the snow normally but after Decembers efforts - 3 inches of snow one day the entire country grinds to a stop, followed by no snow just ice and slush then a little bit more snow, I would prefer it to not snow at the moment.
A family friend rang me the other night to talk about renewable energy - and I admit it I learned something new. He works for a solar panel company and he wanted to see if my house was south facing, due to the Governments feed in tarriff the company he works for will install the solar panels on your roof for free. Being the cynical person I can be I wanted to know what the catch was. Apparently to get the solar panels for free your house (this applys to commercial buildings as well) needs to be south facing and must be able to accommodate at least a 3.5Kw system and must be willing to sign a lease agreement for the company to lease their roof for the next 25 years. The benefits of this is that although the company gets the feed in tarrif from the Government for all the energy going back into the grid the homeowner gets the rest of the free energy and therefore lowers their own personal heating bills. I am going to look into it further and see if my house is suitable - as far as I am concerned it would be a selling point for my property (if and when I sell) as who wouldn't want cheaper heating bills for their home!
Last night I was proved right in my obsession in double checking. I did a "tricky" property the other week, beautiful house but there were numerous improvements that the rdsap would not be able to calculate properly. So to make sure that my EPC was produced correctly and as accurately as possible I rang my accreditation company. This is my 4th year of being a DEA but I would rather ring and double, triple check than produce an incorrect EPC. After quite a bit of back and forth calls we came to a conclusion that would produce the most accurate EPC for the client. Last night made me very glad that I had done that as the client queried the result on the EPC - I managed to explain everything and because I had checked thoroughly I was confident and happy in my answers.
Off to get myself up and dressed ready for the walk to school (saving petrol and energy and hopefully working off a bit of the Christmas stodge!)
I was outside a moment ago (letting the dogs down the garden) and its trying to snow?! I love the snow normally but after Decembers efforts - 3 inches of snow one day the entire country grinds to a stop, followed by no snow just ice and slush then a little bit more snow, I would prefer it to not snow at the moment.
A family friend rang me the other night to talk about renewable energy - and I admit it I learned something new. He works for a solar panel company and he wanted to see if my house was south facing, due to the Governments feed in tarriff the company he works for will install the solar panels on your roof for free. Being the cynical person I can be I wanted to know what the catch was. Apparently to get the solar panels for free your house (this applys to commercial buildings as well) needs to be south facing and must be able to accommodate at least a 3.5Kw system and must be willing to sign a lease agreement for the company to lease their roof for the next 25 years. The benefits of this is that although the company gets the feed in tarrif from the Government for all the energy going back into the grid the homeowner gets the rest of the free energy and therefore lowers their own personal heating bills. I am going to look into it further and see if my house is suitable - as far as I am concerned it would be a selling point for my property (if and when I sell) as who wouldn't want cheaper heating bills for their home!
Last night I was proved right in my obsession in double checking. I did a "tricky" property the other week, beautiful house but there were numerous improvements that the rdsap would not be able to calculate properly. So to make sure that my EPC was produced correctly and as accurately as possible I rang my accreditation company. This is my 4th year of being a DEA but I would rather ring and double, triple check than produce an incorrect EPC. After quite a bit of back and forth calls we came to a conclusion that would produce the most accurate EPC for the client. Last night made me very glad that I had done that as the client queried the result on the EPC - I managed to explain everything and because I had checked thoroughly I was confident and happy in my answers.
Off to get myself up and dressed ready for the walk to school (saving petrol and energy and hopefully working off a bit of the Christmas stodge!)
Tuesday, 18 January 2011
Positive news?
I am by nature a positive person - I must be otherwise I wouldn't be self employed!
I was reading the news this morning and found this titbit :-
"Looking forward, 29 percent more surveyors thought prices would fall in the next three months than rise, down from 41 percent in November.
Heavy snowfall in December kept transaction volumes subdued but surveyors were hopeful turnover would pick up in the spring. Eight percent more surveyors expected sales to increase over the coming three months than decrease, up from six percent in November.
"Surveyor sentiment does appear more positive for the coming months," said RICS spokesman Jeremy Leaf."
Now that to me is fantastic - surveyors are feeling more positive and thinking that the turnover will pick up in the spring. January has always been a quiet time but if we see increases in Feb, March and April the optimisim and movement within the market will encourage more vendors to put their properties on the market and hopefully work can pick up for everyone.
But the most negative part of it is summed up nicely with this comment :-
"The key issue now is mortgage finance. However, with commentators suggesting lending constraints are unlikely to be eased, it is hard to envisage a meaningful increase in sales levels in the near term."
We desperately need lending constraints to be eased up to start the market flowing again.
Its alot of ifs but and hopefullys but what have you got if you haven't got hope!
I was reading the news this morning and found this titbit :-
"Looking forward, 29 percent more surveyors thought prices would fall in the next three months than rise, down from 41 percent in November.
Heavy snowfall in December kept transaction volumes subdued but surveyors were hopeful turnover would pick up in the spring. Eight percent more surveyors expected sales to increase over the coming three months than decrease, up from six percent in November.
"Surveyor sentiment does appear more positive for the coming months," said RICS spokesman Jeremy Leaf."
Now that to me is fantastic - surveyors are feeling more positive and thinking that the turnover will pick up in the spring. January has always been a quiet time but if we see increases in Feb, March and April the optimisim and movement within the market will encourage more vendors to put their properties on the market and hopefully work can pick up for everyone.
But the most negative part of it is summed up nicely with this comment :-
"The key issue now is mortgage finance. However, with commentators suggesting lending constraints are unlikely to be eased, it is hard to envisage a meaningful increase in sales levels in the near term."
We desperately need lending constraints to be eased up to start the market flowing again.
Its alot of ifs but and hopefullys but what have you got if you haven't got hope!
Friday, 14 January 2011
Good time to buy?
http://uk.finance.yahoo.com/news/Escape-landlord-good-yahoofinanceuk-508312233.html
This article is something I have read today and its so nice to see some encouragement about buying a property in the current market.
"But while falling prices and low interest rates make rising rents less excusable, they also mean it could be the best time in years to wave goodbye to the landlord and get a place of your own.
After all why would you want to pay someone else's mortgage when you could own your own home?"
The article goes on to list some of the current mortgage deals available to first time buyers - and (I am definately NOT an expert on mortgages!) there looks like there are some very good affordable deals out there to help people get on the market.
Getting more first time buyers on the market is definately a step in the right direction - it stops the market stagnating and allows the market to start moving freely. The amount of people an improvement in the housing market would benefit is unbelievable - DEAs, estate agents, solicitors, builders etc it would definately be helping the current economy and taking off alot of the gloom.
I hope everyone has a lovely weekend - I'm back on decorating duty!
This article is something I have read today and its so nice to see some encouragement about buying a property in the current market.
"But while falling prices and low interest rates make rising rents less excusable, they also mean it could be the best time in years to wave goodbye to the landlord and get a place of your own.
After all why would you want to pay someone else's mortgage when you could own your own home?"
The article goes on to list some of the current mortgage deals available to first time buyers - and (I am definately NOT an expert on mortgages!) there looks like there are some very good affordable deals out there to help people get on the market.
Getting more first time buyers on the market is definately a step in the right direction - it stops the market stagnating and allows the market to start moving freely. The amount of people an improvement in the housing market would benefit is unbelievable - DEAs, estate agents, solicitors, builders etc it would definately be helping the current economy and taking off alot of the gloom.
I hope everyone has a lovely weekend - I'm back on decorating duty!
Thursday, 13 January 2011
Moving forward
I have actually had a good week - middle one hasn't been fighting at playschool and eldest and youngest are behaving as well so with my mum hat on life hasn't been too bad.
I have finally managed to feel fully recovered from the virus that I caught in December and am back to my normal self re getting my housework and other chores done so the fact that I am normally "on top" of it all by 8am makes me (although admittedly obsessive) quite happy.
There was a survey that I filled in earlier this week which has been started by IDEA (an organisation for Energy Assessors - tries very hard but needs more members and more promotion because it is doing good work) which dealt with what changes could/should be made to the EPC and the industry. I always say it - we haven't got Christine Milne and England didn't organise this like Australia has done and the EPC has not been promoted as the new "granite worktop" as it is in New York so there is a lot that could be done to aid our industry and weed out the unprofessional DEAs. Hopefully this survey WILL begin the changes that are so desperately needed within the industry.
I am carrying out my first inventory today. I have done them previously when I worked as an estate agent but after researching them over the past few months it has suprised me that more emphasis is not placed upon them - they protect both landlord and tenant if done thoroughly, independantly and professionally. There should always be photographs included in the inventory and it should be very detailed! I am taking video camera, notebook and camera (date stamp included) to make sure that it is done to the very highest standard.
Although most people are now saying how many resolutions that they have already broken I saved myself the trouble by not having any this year although I do have a wish list (lets see if any of them have happened by the end of 2011):
1. Lose weight
2. Grow my client base due to standard of my work
3. Work with other DEAs to form a co-operative (provides better service than some of the panels)
4. See the promotion of the EPC by the Government
5. Watch the cowboy DEAs be removed.
6. Keep my family happy and healthy
Have a lovely weekend.
I have finally managed to feel fully recovered from the virus that I caught in December and am back to my normal self re getting my housework and other chores done so the fact that I am normally "on top" of it all by 8am makes me (although admittedly obsessive) quite happy.
There was a survey that I filled in earlier this week which has been started by IDEA (an organisation for Energy Assessors - tries very hard but needs more members and more promotion because it is doing good work) which dealt with what changes could/should be made to the EPC and the industry. I always say it - we haven't got Christine Milne and England didn't organise this like Australia has done and the EPC has not been promoted as the new "granite worktop" as it is in New York so there is a lot that could be done to aid our industry and weed out the unprofessional DEAs. Hopefully this survey WILL begin the changes that are so desperately needed within the industry.
I am carrying out my first inventory today. I have done them previously when I worked as an estate agent but after researching them over the past few months it has suprised me that more emphasis is not placed upon them - they protect both landlord and tenant if done thoroughly, independantly and professionally. There should always be photographs included in the inventory and it should be very detailed! I am taking video camera, notebook and camera (date stamp included) to make sure that it is done to the very highest standard.
Although most people are now saying how many resolutions that they have already broken I saved myself the trouble by not having any this year although I do have a wish list (lets see if any of them have happened by the end of 2011):
1. Lose weight
2. Grow my client base due to standard of my work
3. Work with other DEAs to form a co-operative (provides better service than some of the panels)
4. See the promotion of the EPC by the Government
5. Watch the cowboy DEAs be removed.
6. Keep my family happy and healthy
Have a lovely weekend.
Friday, 26 November 2010
Co-operatives
At the moment there are 100s of websites offering EPCs, both commercial and domestic, at low cost prices Nationwide.
These are more often that not middle-men, and there has been lots of cases recently where DEAs are not being paid and the "middle-men" firms are going under, shutting up and both the DEA and the clients are getting burnt.
In 2008 I was involved with trying to set up a "union" for DEAs - mainly because I am passionate about this industry and wanted to see it promoted more but also because I felt that DEAs NEEDED to work together to provide more coverage and to effectively "cut out" the middlemen.
I feel that this, more than ever, is required. DEAs need to be working together - to provide holiday cover for each other, support and if there were enough DEAs working together to be able to provide a service to larger nationwide estate agents and clients.
If there was Nationwide coverage from a co-operative of DEAs then they would be able to have a larger pot for advertising - putting them "up" there with the middlemen on google rankings and therefore the DEAs would benefit by getting more clients and therefore more work. It would benefit the client because they would be speaking with trained and accredited DEAs and not a call centre operative who would simply be passing a message on.
This solution of a co-operative would benefit all concerned and is definitely on my Christmas wish list this year.
These are more often that not middle-men, and there has been lots of cases recently where DEAs are not being paid and the "middle-men" firms are going under, shutting up and both the DEA and the clients are getting burnt.
In 2008 I was involved with trying to set up a "union" for DEAs - mainly because I am passionate about this industry and wanted to see it promoted more but also because I felt that DEAs NEEDED to work together to provide more coverage and to effectively "cut out" the middlemen.
I feel that this, more than ever, is required. DEAs need to be working together - to provide holiday cover for each other, support and if there were enough DEAs working together to be able to provide a service to larger nationwide estate agents and clients.
If there was Nationwide coverage from a co-operative of DEAs then they would be able to have a larger pot for advertising - putting them "up" there with the middlemen on google rankings and therefore the DEAs would benefit by getting more clients and therefore more work. It would benefit the client because they would be speaking with trained and accredited DEAs and not a call centre operative who would simply be passing a message on.
This solution of a co-operative would benefit all concerned and is definitely on my Christmas wish list this year.
Monday, 22 November 2010
Nothing of interest
http://uk.news.yahoo.com/22/20101122/tsc-uk-climate-costs-011ccfa.html - worth reading. Its interesting to know that it will cost money if we don't work together to save energy and money!
Hope everyone had a good weekend. Work is picking up quiet a bit at the minute (fingers crossed and touch wood) so hopefully it will continue for a while. The evil creatures I live with (my children) have finally been sleeping through the night so I have been playing catch up on my sleep while I can.
Am eagerly awaiting the Cancun fortnight and whatever (hopefully lots) of decisions are made during that time, I haven't been writing as much lately as I think you will all get very bored with me during that fortnight as I get on my soapbox and rant about whatever is released in the press.
I am sad to say that there seems to be still alot of problems for some DEAs getting their money out of an EPC company - it is a shame and there are always two sides to every story but at the end of the day if you have done the work you deserve to be paid and in this current climate it is essential that you are paid and paid on time! There was another story about it today - follow this link http://www.estateagenttoday.co.uk/News/Story/?storyid=3738&type=news_features
Hope everyone had a good weekend. Work is picking up quiet a bit at the minute (fingers crossed and touch wood) so hopefully it will continue for a while. The evil creatures I live with (my children) have finally been sleeping through the night so I have been playing catch up on my sleep while I can.
Am eagerly awaiting the Cancun fortnight and whatever (hopefully lots) of decisions are made during that time, I haven't been writing as much lately as I think you will all get very bored with me during that fortnight as I get on my soapbox and rant about whatever is released in the press.
I am sad to say that there seems to be still alot of problems for some DEAs getting their money out of an EPC company - it is a shame and there are always two sides to every story but at the end of the day if you have done the work you deserve to be paid and in this current climate it is essential that you are paid and paid on time! There was another story about it today - follow this link http://www.estateagenttoday.co.uk/News/Story/?storyid=3738&type=news_features
Saturday, 20 November 2010
Situation normal
I haven't written much this week as 1. have not had much to say, 2. have been that tired. Unfortunately my youngest has decided that sleep is not an option and for the past 6 months he has been getting me up 3-4 times a night. I have been shattered, but on the plus side, it seems like we have finally turned the corner as I have had 3 whole nights of undisturbed sleep! I feel like a new person.
Alot of DEAs that I know are now diversifying - one has become an estate agent, 2 or 3 are now doing cavity wall insulation, another one is selling PVs and a few more are doing inventories.
I already do floor plans, write ups and photos and after Christmas will be including video tours of properties in the services that I offer. I am also considering inventories but I want to check into that more thoroughly before I get involved. I have previously carried out inventories (back in 2005) but I want to check and see what current legislation is and if there are any necessary qualifications/insurances that you need. Obviously I would be an unbias person to carry out the inventory but I like to double check everything first before I start doing anything. I think that it is very necessary to make sure that everything you do is very professional and done to the highest possible standard.
Am having a peaceful (can you call it that?) weekend at home with the children so its nice, I've heard all about the latest school gossip - who has had a red/yellow card etc and who has kissed who and my 3yr old has informed me he is going to marry his girlfriend (that's what I call forward planning).
Off to walk the dogs in the fog. Have a lovely weekend.
Alot of DEAs that I know are now diversifying - one has become an estate agent, 2 or 3 are now doing cavity wall insulation, another one is selling PVs and a few more are doing inventories.
I already do floor plans, write ups and photos and after Christmas will be including video tours of properties in the services that I offer. I am also considering inventories but I want to check into that more thoroughly before I get involved. I have previously carried out inventories (back in 2005) but I want to check and see what current legislation is and if there are any necessary qualifications/insurances that you need. Obviously I would be an unbias person to carry out the inventory but I like to double check everything first before I start doing anything. I think that it is very necessary to make sure that everything you do is very professional and done to the highest possible standard.
Am having a peaceful (can you call it that?) weekend at home with the children so its nice, I've heard all about the latest school gossip - who has had a red/yellow card etc and who has kissed who and my 3yr old has informed me he is going to marry his girlfriend (that's what I call forward planning).
Off to walk the dogs in the fog. Have a lovely weekend.
Tuesday, 16 November 2010
Pricing and cash flow
I feel like screaming at the moment, but I am trying very hard to be calm.
I work very hard. I make sure that all the reports I do are prepared properly - I spend longer than I need to to make sure that I haven't missed any detail and that every part of a property has been assessed thoroughly and professionally. I offer flooplans and will (after Christmas) being offering video's of the properties. I am happy to do inventories and on occassion, if clients want, write up descriptions of the properties.
I keep being undercut which is why I am not getting any new clients and why my current clients are being constantly emailed with offers of fees much lower than mine. I am very glad that (touch wood) I have kept alot of my original clients and gained more over the years but I cannot understand why people continue to devalue the EPC by dropping the fee to a level where it is almost impossible to make a living from it.
I don't believe that EPCs should cost a small fortune, you shouldn't need a bank loan to pay for one and the fee shouldn't make you wince but it should be realistic - its not just the time on site, its the fuel cost, upload cost, and insurance plus the time in the office that all have to be taken into account.
The life of a self employed DEA is not an easy one in the current market conditions but it is one that I enjoy and intend to do for as long as physically and financially possible. But are we in danger of losing the professional DEAs in favour of the cowboys as the professional ones lose clients to the cowboys?? I hope not. I lost one client due to price who then came back to me due to the very poor service they were getting from the lower priced DEA and for that I am grateful. Another client came back to me due to poor service and bad turnaround from a low priced DEA and asked if I would just upload the EPC for them if they (the estate agent) assessed the property - I could have made £20 for doing nothing more than uploading an EPC - no site visit, no petrol costs etc BUT I refused because I am a professional and it is against the regulations, I didn't get the client back because I wouldn't do that and I am sure there is someone else out there doing that for them as we speak.
Apart from undercutting there also seems to be a problem with payment for some DEAs - http://www.estateagenttoday.co.uk/News/Story/?storyid=3716&title=EPC_boss_Whatcott_says_he_will_sue_as_DEA_anger_mounts&type=news_features
it appears that the DEAs have carried out work for this company and then are struggling to get paid. As a self employed DEA it is important that you get paid on time as there simply isn't the cashflow in the business to let invoices remain unpaid. I have worked for the company in question in the Estate Agent Today article and I thankfully have been paid by them. I have only ever not been paid by one company and it still annoys me to this day - it has certainly made me less trusting and I keep a very close eye on my invoices.
What I wouldn't give for a Christine Milne in the energy assessors corner in the UK today.
I work very hard. I make sure that all the reports I do are prepared properly - I spend longer than I need to to make sure that I haven't missed any detail and that every part of a property has been assessed thoroughly and professionally. I offer flooplans and will (after Christmas) being offering video's of the properties. I am happy to do inventories and on occassion, if clients want, write up descriptions of the properties.
I keep being undercut which is why I am not getting any new clients and why my current clients are being constantly emailed with offers of fees much lower than mine. I am very glad that (touch wood) I have kept alot of my original clients and gained more over the years but I cannot understand why people continue to devalue the EPC by dropping the fee to a level where it is almost impossible to make a living from it.
I don't believe that EPCs should cost a small fortune, you shouldn't need a bank loan to pay for one and the fee shouldn't make you wince but it should be realistic - its not just the time on site, its the fuel cost, upload cost, and insurance plus the time in the office that all have to be taken into account.
The life of a self employed DEA is not an easy one in the current market conditions but it is one that I enjoy and intend to do for as long as physically and financially possible. But are we in danger of losing the professional DEAs in favour of the cowboys as the professional ones lose clients to the cowboys?? I hope not. I lost one client due to price who then came back to me due to the very poor service they were getting from the lower priced DEA and for that I am grateful. Another client came back to me due to poor service and bad turnaround from a low priced DEA and asked if I would just upload the EPC for them if they (the estate agent) assessed the property - I could have made £20 for doing nothing more than uploading an EPC - no site visit, no petrol costs etc BUT I refused because I am a professional and it is against the regulations, I didn't get the client back because I wouldn't do that and I am sure there is someone else out there doing that for them as we speak.
Apart from undercutting there also seems to be a problem with payment for some DEAs - http://www.estateagenttoday.co.uk/News/Story/?storyid=3716&title=EPC_boss_Whatcott_says_he_will_sue_as_DEA_anger_mounts&type=news_features
it appears that the DEAs have carried out work for this company and then are struggling to get paid. As a self employed DEA it is important that you get paid on time as there simply isn't the cashflow in the business to let invoices remain unpaid. I have worked for the company in question in the Estate Agent Today article and I thankfully have been paid by them. I have only ever not been paid by one company and it still annoys me to this day - it has certainly made me less trusting and I keep a very close eye on my invoices.
What I wouldn't give for a Christine Milne in the energy assessors corner in the UK today.
Saturday, 13 November 2010
Anyone can do an EPC?
"Now everyone can do an 'EPC' thanks to new phone app
Friday 27th August 2010In what sounds like bad news for the already beleaguered energy assessor industry, a new phone app is being launched which will give everyone the ability to audit and generate an A to G rating on any home.
A London firm called Qreative Medias is behind the application ‘Home Energy Performance’ which is available on the iPhone and iPad in the Apple Stores.It is thought users will be home owners, buyers, estate agents, letting agents and builders.The app not only delivers an energy rating but also recommendations and advice, with a pdf report.The report indicates the EPC score, including the A to G graph required under the EU directive. The app is available worldwide and in several different languages. However, a spokesman for Qreative Media said that whilst the app generates an EPC, exactly as a survey would do and in conformity with guidelines, it would not count as the 'real' thing in terms of requirements for selling or renting a property, as it is generated by the iPhone user and not by a registered and accredited Domestic Energy Assessor.
http://home-energy-performance.mobi"
The above story comes from http://www.estateagenttoday.co.uk/News/Story/?storyid=3468&title=Now_everyone_can_do_an_'EPC'_thanks_to_new_phone_app&type=news_features.
It may seem like an absolutely awful idea and the final death blow to all those people who spent their life savings/remortgaged their houses to become a fully trained accredited Domestic Energy Assessor but even the creaters of the software Qreative Media said that the app generates an EPC it DOES NOT count as the real thing. Plus in my mind unless the person who is using the app understands exactly what a DEA looks for and assesses then there is a large possibility of the data being collected incorrectly, entered incorrectly etc so it can never be a substitute for a real EPC. There is of course the possibility that the app may be used by some people to try and get away with not having a correctly done EPC by an accredited and trained DEA.
On the plus side if it gets people interested in EPCs and the fact that they can save money and energy that has to be counted as a positive.
Thursday, 11 November 2010
Jealousy and healthy competition
I admit it I am jealous - I am jealous of the fact that Germany have publicly said they want to be the world leaders in energy saving, I am jealous of the website that Sweden have and how active their promotion is, I am jealous that Australia has someone like Christine Milne and that they set the fees for the assessments.
It should be competition and spurring other countries on, the UK should be looking at what Australia has done - the setting the fees and the promotion and emphasise on the changes that should be made to housing and making the same changes. Lets face it - while the EPC contains recommendations only not many people are going to spend their money on doing the work especially in the middle of the credit crunch. There should be a website like Sweden has available in the UK - easy to understand, well written, explanations there for all to see and lots of useful advice.
There are alot of changes to be made and I remain hopeful that a little jealousy and healthy competition will spur other countries on to better things, making the necessary changes and doing all their can for the global community.
It should be competition and spurring other countries on, the UK should be looking at what Australia has done - the setting the fees and the promotion and emphasise on the changes that should be made to housing and making the same changes. Lets face it - while the EPC contains recommendations only not many people are going to spend their money on doing the work especially in the middle of the credit crunch. There should be a website like Sweden has available in the UK - easy to understand, well written, explanations there for all to see and lots of useful advice.
There are alot of changes to be made and I remain hopeful that a little jealousy and healthy competition will spur other countries on to better things, making the necessary changes and doing all their can for the global community.
Wednesday, 10 November 2010
A learning experience
I am very glad that I started this blog as it has made me more interested in what is going on around me in the Global community with regards to energy saving. Up until last week I had no idea what Australia had already done and had never heard of Christine Milne (she is now a heroine of mine), I didn't know that the US were looking into measuring the energy efficency of properties and it is being promoted even in the planning stage as something that will increase or decrease the marketability of a property.
I have gotten frustrated though with the seeming lack of communication between the countries. Why aren't they all working together - seeing what the others have already tried and what the problems have been (training providers, setting a fee, too many assessors etc)?
I am passionate about energy saving, I believe in practising what I preach (am fully double glazed, good combi condensing boiler and lots of insulation) and am always open to new ideas.
Scotland have started looking at how they need to adapt the rdSAP that currently produces the EPC as it doesn't apply fully to their housing stock and the weather conditions. Its a good way of doing things - take something that already works and adapt it to correctly fit the country. Its a flexible approach that saves time.
I have looked at the other websites, some are very client friendly such as Sweden with an easy to understand site that encourages you to look further, others such as France are filled with details that are encouraging but require a little more time to read through.
It is very promising and a great start - just think if all houses that were assessed were required/strongly encouraged (ie makes the property more saleable) how much difference it would make to the world.
I have gotten frustrated though with the seeming lack of communication between the countries. Why aren't they all working together - seeing what the others have already tried and what the problems have been (training providers, setting a fee, too many assessors etc)?
I am passionate about energy saving, I believe in practising what I preach (am fully double glazed, good combi condensing boiler and lots of insulation) and am always open to new ideas.
Scotland have started looking at how they need to adapt the rdSAP that currently produces the EPC as it doesn't apply fully to their housing stock and the weather conditions. Its a good way of doing things - take something that already works and adapt it to correctly fit the country. Its a flexible approach that saves time.
I have looked at the other websites, some are very client friendly such as Sweden with an easy to understand site that encourages you to look further, others such as France are filled with details that are encouraging but require a little more time to read through.
It is very promising and a great start - just think if all houses that were assessed were required/strongly encouraged (ie makes the property more saleable) how much difference it would make to the world.
Tuesday, 9 November 2010
What can we learn from other countries?
I have been reading some of my favourite blogs this morning and looking for new information about what other countries are doing to reduce the energy usage of their privately owned properties. Whilst I was looking I found this: -http://www.energy-performance-certificates.org/blog/think-domestic-energy-assessors-have-it-bad. Its from Mike C's blog and is dated back in March of this year, Mike has tirelessly provided good, up to date information for DEAs and the general public with regards to the energy assessors industry within this country and is one of the people I admire.
"Australia’s Housing Sustainability Assessment Scheme (HSAS) launched in July 2009 to provide 360,000 homes with free energy assessments, allowing homeowners to qualify for an interest-free loan of up to AU$10,000 to pay for energy-efficiency improvements under its Green Loans Program, repayable over four years. " Mike goes on to explain that it was thought that this scheme would take over 4 years to complete and provide work for the assessors in Australia.
Fortunately the Australians did alot of things right such as:
1. Setting a fee (no undercutting or rogue traders over there)
2. Giving lots of promotion.
3. Only one accreditaton scheme.
4. Interest free loan to make the improvements (great idea and a good way to get people to carry out the improvements in my opinion)
Although there were also the problems with the fact that the accreditation scheme suspended new assessor registration and late payments by the government to the assessors. And once again those nasty training providers were at it again, the Australian government did not cap the amount of assessors needed leaving the assessors in much the same position as the ones here in the UK with too many assessors and not enough work - the only people to benefit from that have been (once again) the training providers.
What was nice to see though was this quote from the ASBA - "While it was not our role under the Federal Government protocol to limit the number of registrations, we became sufficiently concerned with the increased number of assessors seeking accreditation. Therefore we took the decision to limit the number of registrations pending while at the same time putting our concerns directly to DEWHA. "
Apparently though the assessors in Australia have a champion, who believe in speaking her mind clearly - Christine Milne, who is a Green Party MP. Its nice to see that they have some one fighting their corner.
In 2011 Australia is legislating for homes sold to have a certificate of environmental performance - I can only hope that they look at what has happened already with their assessors and limit the number accredited and continue to keep the fees fixed so that the assessors do not suffer the same fate as the DEAs in the UK.
There are many things that both countries can learn from one another and this is what I feel would help in both countries:
1. Set the fee
2. Watch the training providers
3. One overall governing body
4. Incentives to encourage energy saving
5. Promotion to encourage greater understanding of the certificate
6. An EPC should only be valid for 12 months - not 3 years for selling and 10 years for rental. It causes confusion.
7. Cap the amount of assessors.
"Australia’s Housing Sustainability Assessment Scheme (HSAS) launched in July 2009 to provide 360,000 homes with free energy assessments, allowing homeowners to qualify for an interest-free loan of up to AU$10,000 to pay for energy-efficiency improvements under its Green Loans Program, repayable over four years. " Mike goes on to explain that it was thought that this scheme would take over 4 years to complete and provide work for the assessors in Australia.
Fortunately the Australians did alot of things right such as:
1. Setting a fee (no undercutting or rogue traders over there)
2. Giving lots of promotion.
3. Only one accreditaton scheme.
4. Interest free loan to make the improvements (great idea and a good way to get people to carry out the improvements in my opinion)
Although there were also the problems with the fact that the accreditation scheme suspended new assessor registration and late payments by the government to the assessors. And once again those nasty training providers were at it again, the Australian government did not cap the amount of assessors needed leaving the assessors in much the same position as the ones here in the UK with too many assessors and not enough work - the only people to benefit from that have been (once again) the training providers.
What was nice to see though was this quote from the ASBA - "While it was not our role under the Federal Government protocol to limit the number of registrations, we became sufficiently concerned with the increased number of assessors seeking accreditation. Therefore we took the decision to limit the number of registrations pending while at the same time putting our concerns directly to DEWHA. "
Apparently though the assessors in Australia have a champion, who believe in speaking her mind clearly - Christine Milne, who is a Green Party MP. Its nice to see that they have some one fighting their corner.
In 2011 Australia is legislating for homes sold to have a certificate of environmental performance - I can only hope that they look at what has happened already with their assessors and limit the number accredited and continue to keep the fees fixed so that the assessors do not suffer the same fate as the DEAs in the UK.
There are many things that both countries can learn from one another and this is what I feel would help in both countries:
1. Set the fee
2. Watch the training providers
3. One overall governing body
4. Incentives to encourage energy saving
5. Promotion to encourage greater understanding of the certificate
6. An EPC should only be valid for 12 months - not 3 years for selling and 10 years for rental. It causes confusion.
7. Cap the amount of assessors.
Monday, 8 November 2010
Normal jitters
I have woken up this morning and am having my monthly worry about work loads - its quiet, too quiet - can I afford to continue with the job that I adore????
Since becoming self employed in January of 2008 I regularly panic about my workload, after all I have 3 children, 4 dogs and bills to pay, I need to make sure that my money is coming in. But this is a job I truly believe in, I love doing and it gives me time to spend with my children so what do you do? I make sure that my turnaround is within 24hours whenever possible and do my best to give good customer service and make sure that I am professional at all times so that I retain my existing clients which I consider essential.
The only part of my job I am not so keen on is chasing invoices - I hate it to be honest. I have only not been paid once and given the fact that I have been in business for nearly 3 years and only have one unpaid invoice thats not bad going! But when is too early to chase invoices and what is the polite way to do it? But as I said I am very lucky with my clients, they all pay on time (if not early) and are brilliant in that regard.
But what does get me at the moment is these facts:
1. Training providers are still advertising training courses for DEAs, "earn between 25,000 -30,000 a year" - thats simply not possible in the current climate. There are alot of DEAs that sunk retirement/redundancy/loans etc into training with training providers that promised them the moon, stars and sun and they have had to return back to previous methods of employment because the work simply isn't there and yet the training providers are still out there taking money off people.
2. Where is the unity with DEAs? There are several groups/organisations that are trying very hard to band DEAs together (I was involved with one of them) so that the self employed DEA can work together for better prices and better promotion but there isn't enough DEAs joining the groups.
3. Middlemen - there are too many firms out there offering cut price/ reverse auction EPCs to the general public but who pay the DEA a pittance. It isn't good for the industry, isn't professional and doesn't do any good for the pockets of the DEA.
There we go rant over for the morning, better go and do the school run x
Since becoming self employed in January of 2008 I regularly panic about my workload, after all I have 3 children, 4 dogs and bills to pay, I need to make sure that my money is coming in. But this is a job I truly believe in, I love doing and it gives me time to spend with my children so what do you do? I make sure that my turnaround is within 24hours whenever possible and do my best to give good customer service and make sure that I am professional at all times so that I retain my existing clients which I consider essential.
The only part of my job I am not so keen on is chasing invoices - I hate it to be honest. I have only not been paid once and given the fact that I have been in business for nearly 3 years and only have one unpaid invoice thats not bad going! But when is too early to chase invoices and what is the polite way to do it? But as I said I am very lucky with my clients, they all pay on time (if not early) and are brilliant in that regard.
But what does get me at the moment is these facts:
1. Training providers are still advertising training courses for DEAs, "earn between 25,000 -30,000 a year" - thats simply not possible in the current climate. There are alot of DEAs that sunk retirement/redundancy/loans etc into training with training providers that promised them the moon, stars and sun and they have had to return back to previous methods of employment because the work simply isn't there and yet the training providers are still out there taking money off people.
2. Where is the unity with DEAs? There are several groups/organisations that are trying very hard to band DEAs together (I was involved with one of them) so that the self employed DEA can work together for better prices and better promotion but there isn't enough DEAs joining the groups.
3. Middlemen - there are too many firms out there offering cut price/ reverse auction EPCs to the general public but who pay the DEA a pittance. It isn't good for the industry, isn't professional and doesn't do any good for the pockets of the DEA.
There we go rant over for the morning, better go and do the school run x
Green Deal and assessors.
"The enormity of the challenge soon became apparent and the first meeting was barely able to scratch the surface of the task. The Green Deal is proposing that all households should be eligible for an energy assessment that will provide them with guidance on the investment choices that they can make and also give them behaviour change advice.
This will be the first point of contact that households will have with the Green Deal and the assessments will need to have integrity, independence, consistency and be of a high quality. Working out the funding model to achieve this, finding people with the skills able to deliver the assessments and ensuring there is a good level of quality control is a major task for policy-makers.
As we go through the process similar changes will appear at all other stages of the delivery model. What is highly encouraging is the level of Ministerial ambition behind the programme and the openness of DECC officials to external ideas and advice"
I have pinched the above from: http://www.businessgreen.com/business-green/comment/2272705/developing-green-deal as I thought it was very thought provoking and made some very valid points.
As a Domestic Energy Assessor the bit that grabs me is the first point of contact that householders will have - who will it be? It goes on to say that there it needs to find people with the skills able to deliver the assessments and ensure that there is good quality control - to my mind it is obvious, the assessors should ONLY be DEAs - they are already over 50% trained, are CRB checked and are used to being professional within clients houses, it makes complete sense to use DEAs for this role!
As a home owner I am obviously worried about potential financial implications but it has been stated that the Green Deal will provide grants/links with energy companies to fund the work to make the UK more energy efficent.
Only time will tell!
Thursday, 4 November 2010
EPCs and CO2
Which countries have the greatest carbon footprint? As of research conducted by Pitney Bowes, collecting the latest data from around the globe, the country with the greatest carbon footprint per capita is the United States, with 20.1 tons of CO2 per capita. But numbers two, three, and four may surprise you.
Per capita, they are . . .
- United States (20.1 tons)
- Canada (18.4 tons)
- Belgium (14.3 tons)
- Finland (11.8 tons)
- France (6.7 tons)
- Germany (10.5tons)
- Netherlands (16.6 tons)
- Spain (8.8 tons)
- Switzerland (6.1 tons)
- United Kingdom (9.7 tons)
I can't say I am suprised to see how much is produced by the United States but the level of CO2 from Belgium is a suprise.
So lets say the US and Canada as the two largest producers of CO2 per capita start using the EPC with the addition of the recommendations of the EPC (don't forget am more than happy to visit either country to demonstrate the EPC) have to be carried out wouldn't we, as a global community, see a huge benefit?
I carried out an EPC this morning on a pre 1900 property and if the owner/landlord carried out the recommendations there would be a difference of over 10 points from the current 31on the environmental impact graph to a potential 41. At present the carbon dioxide emmissions from the property are 8.1 tonnes, with the potential if the recommendations were followed to be reduced to 6.4 tonnes - thats a reduction of 1.7 tonnes on just one property!If every property was assessed in the world just think of the difference it could make!
House prices rose by 1.8 percent last month
House prices rose by 1.8 percent last month, three times faster than expected, leaving house price growth in the three months to October compared with a year ago at 1.2 percent, mortgage lender Halifax said on Thursday. But Halifax said a fall of 1.2 percent in the three months to October compared with the previous three months gave a more representative view of house price trends, although it does not expect a prolonged decline in prices.
"An increase in the number of properties available for sale in recent months, together with a decline in demand has put some downward pressure on prices in recent months," said Halifax economist Martin Ellis. "We do not believe that prices are set to fall sharply over a sustained period."
Analysts had expected a rise of 0.6 percent in October for a three-month annual rate of 0.7 percent.
Halifax said the average price of a home stood at 164,919 pounds in October. A survey by rival mortgage lender Nationwide last week showed house prices fell 0.7 percent in October, for an annual rise of 1.4 percent.
So good news at last the house prices are going up and that is promising. I feel that its confidence in the property market thats needed, if people feel secure to buy or sell their properties then the market will see an increase but while there is bad news people tend to stay away from the property market. Hopefully 2011 will see renewed confidence in the market and an increase in EPCs for me!
"An increase in the number of properties available for sale in recent months, together with a decline in demand has put some downward pressure on prices in recent months," said Halifax economist Martin Ellis. "We do not believe that prices are set to fall sharply over a sustained period."
Analysts had expected a rise of 0.6 percent in October for a three-month annual rate of 0.7 percent.
Halifax said the average price of a home stood at 164,919 pounds in October. A survey by rival mortgage lender Nationwide last week showed house prices fell 0.7 percent in October, for an annual rise of 1.4 percent.
So good news at last the house prices are going up and that is promising. I feel that its confidence in the property market thats needed, if people feel secure to buy or sell their properties then the market will see an increase but while there is bad news people tend to stay away from the property market. Hopefully 2011 will see renewed confidence in the market and an increase in EPCs for me!
Wednesday, 3 November 2010
Worry and dreams
I'm sitting here alone at my computer, kids are all organised so it is fairly peaceful in my house at the moment and I am having a moment of worry..........................do I do the RICs Associate course?
I have always wanted to be a chartered surveyor, I have put myself through numerous courses, studied into the early hours and then gone to work and looked after a small baby, took jobs I didn't really want that came with a paycut just to get more experience and I am now looking at the work required and wondering if I can do it?
I know I will buckle down and get on with it but its nice every now and again to remind yourself of how far you have come and that your dream is finally going to be within reach.
I have another dream and that is for the EPCs to be fully promoted within this country - the Green Deal brings with it a whole new range of possibilities, with a little tweaking the EPCs could provide the full advise to the householder/landlords and the Government would have an army of people who are already trained ready to go out and put that part of the Green Deal into motion.
DEAs have been promised the world by training providers (that mysteriously disappeared in the end) and there are still adverts/emails appearing offering people the chance of a fantastic new career within the energy assessing industry where as the actual truth is that there is already more than enough trained energy assessors within the UK and unless you are guaranteed work by a very trustworthy source then you really shouldn't train. I love my career and am very happy to do the work but at the moment I would advise people against paying any money to become a DEA.
I do hope that if any other country begins putting EPCs or something similar in place that they monitor the training providers and make sure that the trainee energy assessors are not taken for a ride.
I have always wanted to be a chartered surveyor, I have put myself through numerous courses, studied into the early hours and then gone to work and looked after a small baby, took jobs I didn't really want that came with a paycut just to get more experience and I am now looking at the work required and wondering if I can do it?
I know I will buckle down and get on with it but its nice every now and again to remind yourself of how far you have come and that your dream is finally going to be within reach.
I have another dream and that is for the EPCs to be fully promoted within this country - the Green Deal brings with it a whole new range of possibilities, with a little tweaking the EPCs could provide the full advise to the householder/landlords and the Government would have an army of people who are already trained ready to go out and put that part of the Green Deal into motion.
DEAs have been promised the world by training providers (that mysteriously disappeared in the end) and there are still adverts/emails appearing offering people the chance of a fantastic new career within the energy assessing industry where as the actual truth is that there is already more than enough trained energy assessors within the UK and unless you are guaranteed work by a very trustworthy source then you really shouldn't train. I love my career and am very happy to do the work but at the moment I would advise people against paying any money to become a DEA.
I do hope that if any other country begins putting EPCs or something similar in place that they monitor the training providers and make sure that the trainee energy assessors are not taken for a ride.
A normal day at home?
I haven't really spoken much about my life other than the work side of it. I have three children - 8yr old daughter, and two sons age 3yrs and 18 months.
As it is quiet at the moment (am trying not to worry - but as I am self employed its difficult not too) I had the luxury of a complete day at home with the kids. So it starts of in the normal manic run round, breakfast, shower and dress the little ones, bit of housework followed by the school run with the nightmare of parking and getting the eldest to school without letting the 3yr old run off (definately not an easy task). When we were at home I had to take a phone call so went out via the patio doors so that I could hear the person on the other end instead of trying the make out the conversation whilst the kids were playing loudly. During the phone call the 3 yr old scaled the stairgate into the kitchen and locked me out. So I spent 10minutes of my morning begging the 3yr old to give Mummy the keys!
I spent the remainder of the afternoon on the garden planting bulbs while the youngest two ran up and down screaming and playing with cars and the dogs. So it was a good afternoon until I had to face the school run again and find somewhere that wasn't a 2 mile trek away from the school to park - I refuse to double park or park on corners unlike the rest of the parents so it can be tricky.
I love the variety my job offers me and the fact that I get to spend extra time with the kids, I am one of the lucky ones.
But on a rainy and cold November afternoon I can't help hoping that I will get invited to the USA or New Zealand to discuss the EPC and how it works in the UK...................well it makes a change from daydreams about winning the lottery. I am glad that I started this blog as it has encouraged me to read more about what is happening about the Green Deal in the UK and across the world, at the end of the day we all as global citizens need to do more, its no good leaving it alone and hoping it will go away - its our world and we ALL have to look after it. The other advantage of this blog is with the fact that my other half is in the Army it gives me somewhere to vent my feelings of frustration about the lack of promotion of the EPC and related topics as the kids don't really seem to want to hear it - the eldest would rather watch Hannah Montana :)
As it is quiet at the moment (am trying not to worry - but as I am self employed its difficult not too) I had the luxury of a complete day at home with the kids. So it starts of in the normal manic run round, breakfast, shower and dress the little ones, bit of housework followed by the school run with the nightmare of parking and getting the eldest to school without letting the 3yr old run off (definately not an easy task). When we were at home I had to take a phone call so went out via the patio doors so that I could hear the person on the other end instead of trying the make out the conversation whilst the kids were playing loudly. During the phone call the 3 yr old scaled the stairgate into the kitchen and locked me out. So I spent 10minutes of my morning begging the 3yr old to give Mummy the keys!
I spent the remainder of the afternoon on the garden planting bulbs while the youngest two ran up and down screaming and playing with cars and the dogs. So it was a good afternoon until I had to face the school run again and find somewhere that wasn't a 2 mile trek away from the school to park - I refuse to double park or park on corners unlike the rest of the parents so it can be tricky.
I love the variety my job offers me and the fact that I get to spend extra time with the kids, I am one of the lucky ones.
But on a rainy and cold November afternoon I can't help hoping that I will get invited to the USA or New Zealand to discuss the EPC and how it works in the UK...................well it makes a change from daydreams about winning the lottery. I am glad that I started this blog as it has encouraged me to read more about what is happening about the Green Deal in the UK and across the world, at the end of the day we all as global citizens need to do more, its no good leaving it alone and hoping it will go away - its our world and we ALL have to look after it. The other advantage of this blog is with the fact that my other half is in the Army it gives me somewhere to vent my feelings of frustration about the lack of promotion of the EPC and related topics as the kids don't really seem to want to hear it - the eldest would rather watch Hannah Montana :)
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