Back to main menu
Search
Search
Overlay
Energy efficient housing tracker - July 2024 update

Consumer attitudes towards greener homes

We commissioned the 'Greener Homes Attitude Tracker', based on 4,500 UK individuals, to understand how homebuyers, renters and owners feel about greener homes and the importance of environmental features.

On this page:

Green home improvements index Open in new window
Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) ranking Open in new window
Energy efficient home improvements Open in new window
Homebuyer preferences Open in new window
Green lifestyle choices Open in new window
Green financial products Open in new window
Download the report Open in new window

Our key findings for greener homes

More planning sustainable improvements

More homeowners are planning sustainable improvements to their homes, with 67% planning for the next decade – the highest level seen since 2022 - and 23% planning changes in the next 12 months.

Cost of improvements still a barrier

68% of those without plans state that cost remains a barrier to making home improvements, however fewer homeowners are being put off by the upfront expense (down to 42%).

Environmental transport choices

Environmentally conscious transport choices are increasing - nearly one-in-ten report driving an electric or hybrid vehicle, 14% cycle and around 30% use public transport regularly to reduce environmental impact.

40% view EPC rating as very important

40% of prospective homebuyers looking to purchase a property in the next 10 years still view a property’s EPC rating as a very important factor.

Green home improvements index

Homeowners' appetite for making sustainable improvements to their property increased in the first half of 2024. The green home improvements index that tracks the number of respondents planning to make changes in the next 12 months has rebounded from an average of 20% in H2 2023, the lowest in two years, to 23% in H1 2024.

 The outlook for the next decade as a whole has also brightened, with those with sustainability improvement plans rising from an average of 64% to 67% – the highest since H2 2022.

Information Message

This is an optional compliance section which is disabled by default.

Energy performance certificate (EPC) ranking

Whilst the vast majority of prospective homebuyers continue to place some degree of importance on a property’s energy efficiency, it remains a relatively low priority overall.

Around 40% of those looking to buy in the next 10 years considered the Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) rating a "very important" factor, data collected in the three months to June showed. This compared to 65% for the cost of the property and 60% for its location. It also ranked behind internet speed (49%) and access to public transport (41%).

Energy efficient home improvements

More homeowners are now planning to make improvements to the environmental sustainability of their property compared to the situation at the end of last year. Cost remains the number one barrier by some margin, but latest data has found that fewer homeowners are now being put off by the upfront expense or the prospect of taking on debt to fund the work. 

At the same time, our most recent survey shows that homeowners are more in favour of policy proposals offering support to make homes greener than renters. That's despite renters being more likely to say they are less confident of affording their energy bills than a year ago.      

More homeowners planning green home improvements in the next 12 months

The proportion of homeowners with plans for green home improvements in the next 12 months has risen noticeably from a low point of 19% in final quarter of 2023 to 24% in the three months to June. This is the highest since Q3 2022.

The medium-term outlook has also changed for the better, with the proportion of those with plans for the next 1-5 years ticking up from 31% at the end of last year to 33%. 

Upfront costs are the most common barrier to starting green home improvements.

Among the homeowners that don't have plans for sustainable home improvements, around 68% stated that the cost of the work required was a barrier. The next biggest obstacle was the amount of disruption the work would cause (33%).

That said, the proportion of those without plans for green home improvements reporting that the upfront cost was a barrier has fallen in recent months, down to 42% in Q2 2024 from 50% in the three months to March. Fewer homeowners also feel discouraged by the prospect of taking on debt to fund the work (34%, down from 38%).  

Open in new window

Data collected in the six months to June showed that electric car charging points and triple-glazed windows were the two features most likely to be included in homeowners' plans for green home improvements in the next 10 years, at around 38% in both cases. For triple-glazing, this represents a noticeable jump from 34% in the second half of 2023. Around 11% of homeowners said they already have them installed, unchanged from H2 2023.

Information Message

Solar panels were already installed in around 15% of owner-occupied homes, data collected in the first six months of this year showed, up from 13% in H2 2023. There's been a similar rise in homeowners reporting that they have an electric boiler installed (20% up from 18%). By comparison, gas boilers remained a feature in around two-thirds of owner-occupied homes. However, this was down from approximately 75% in 2021, when the survey was first conducted.  

Our greener homes retrofit project

We teamed up with British Gas and Worcester Bosch to cover the cost of home retrofits for nine of our customers, with co-ordination help from Quidos. We followed our customers through every stage of their retrofit journey - from start to finish - and we're now sharing it all with you. 

Find out more about greener homes retrofit Open in new window

Homebuyer preferences

Rear view of indian couple checking on digital tablet housing energy efficiency rate. Young couple searching new green house on digital tablet. Husband embracing wife while checking the energy efficiency status of their home.

For those looking to purchase a property in the next 10 years, its cost and location remain far and away the most important factors being considered. The importance of a property's Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) rating has plateaued in recent years.

Nevertheless, the importance placed on environmental features such as heat pumps, solar panels, EV charging points and water meters has risen in the past 12 months.

Information Message

This is an optional compliance section which is disabled by default.

Importance of EPC rating

Around 84% of households looking to buy a property in the next 10 years gave some degree of importance to the EPC rating, data collected in three months to June showed. However, only 40% considered it "very important", which was unchanged from a year ago and the third-lowest amongst the 12 factors surveyed, ahead of only proximity to schools (29%) and the age of the property (28%).

The EPC rating's highest ranking by this metric was achieved in Q4 2022 – around the peak of inflation in household energy bills – when it placed eighth out of the 12 factors surveyed.   

Green lifestyle choices

Nearly one-in-ten people surveyed in the first half of 2024 reported driving either a fully-electric or hybrid vehicle, almost twice the proportion recorded in the second half of 2021. There has also been a rise in the regular use of public transport, alongside an uptick in the number of people choosing to cycle instead of using a car in order to reduce their environmental impact, latest data shows.

Around 9% of respondents surveyed in the six months to June said they drive either a fully-electric or hybrid vehicle. This is up from approximately 5% in the second half of 2021.
Open in new window

Of all the green lifestyle choices, the most notable increase has been in the regular use of public transport, with around 30% reporting they that they do so in order to reduce their environmental impact, up from 23% in H2 2021.

Information Message

Another action more people are taking to reduce their environmental impact is regularly cycling to places instead of using a car. This has risen from 11% just under three years ago to 14% in H1 2024. 

The NatWest Home Energy Hub

We’ve launched a one-stop shop to help homeowners create a more energy-efficient home - the NatWest Home Energy Hub:

  • Get a free Home Energy Plan tool to help get started.
  • Find out about Energy Performance Certificate ratings (EPCs), get tips on managing energy use and how they could reduce costs.
  • Discover ways that could improve home energy efficiency online or with a visit from an energy expert at a discounted rate.
  • Find out how much any changes could cost and the benefits of energy-efficiency home improvements.
  • Connect with experts and trustworthy tradespeople who can do the work.
  • Explore various funding options including grants and or find out how NatWest could help.
Go to the Home Energy Hub Open in new window

Slight increase in uptake of green financial products

Our latest data showed a slight increase in the number of adults that either have green financial products or are considering taking them out, including green mortgages.

Find out more about our Green Mortgages (Eligibility & Exclusions apply) Open in new window

Download the Greener Homes Attitude Tracker - July 2024

You can download a pdf version of the full report, save and share by using the link below.

Survey methodology

The NatWest Greener Homes Attitude Tracker survey was first conducted in May 2021 and is compiled by S&P Global. The survey is intended to accurately anticipate changing consumer behaviour. The questionnaire is designed to be quick and easy to complete, incorporating a small number of key questions, which encourages regular participation among even high-level respondents.

The survey is based on monthly responses from 1,500 individuals in the UK, with data collected by Ipsos MORI from its panel of respondents aged 18-64. The survey sample is structured according to gender, region and age to ensure the survey results accurately reflect the true composition of the population. Results are also weighted to further improve representativeness.

Ipsos MORI technical details (July 2024 survey)

Ipsos interviewed 9,000 adults aged 18-64 across the United Kingdom from its online panel of respondents and partner panels. Interviews were conducted online on a monthly basis between January 2024 – June 2024 to an approximate monthly sample of 1,500 adults. Respondents were excluded from taking part again in the survey for a 3 month period. A representative sample of adults was interviewed with quota controls set on gender, age and region and the resultant survey data was weighted to the known UK profile of this audience by gender, age, region and household income. Ipsos was responsible for the fieldwork and data collection only and not responsible for the analysis, reporting or interpretation of the survey results.

For further information on the survey methodology, please contact economics@spglobal.com.

About S&P Global

S&P Global (NYSE: SPGI) S&P Global provides essential intelligence. We enable governments, businesses and individuals with the right data, expertise and connected technology so that they can make decisions with conviction. From helping our customers assess new investments to guiding them through ESG and energy transition across supply chains, we unlock new opportunities, solve challenges and accelerate progress for the world.

We are widely sought after by many of the world’s leading organizations to provide credit ratings, benchmarks, analytics and workflow solutions in the global capital, commodity and automotive markets. With every one of our offerings, we help the world’s leading organizations plan for tomorrow, today.

The NatWest Greener Homes Attitude Tracker survey was first conducted in May 2021 and is compiled by S&P Global. The survey is based on monthly responses from 1,500 individuals in the UK, with data collected by Ipsos MORI from its panel of respondents aged 18-64. The survey sample reflects the true composition of the population to ensure the accuracy of the survey results.