The short answer is yes — but the fuller answer is more useful. If you’re preparing to put your home on the market, understanding exactly what’s required around an EPC when selling a house could save you a delayed sale, a fine, or an awkward conversation with your solicitor the week before completion.
This isn’t a topic where vague reassurances from your estate agent are good enough. The rules are specific, the responsibility sits with you as the seller, and the consequences of getting it wrong can range from mildly irritating to genuinely costly.
As Domestic Energy Assessors, we get calls from sellers at every stage of the process — some planning well ahead, others ringing in a panic because their solicitor has just flagged a missing certificate three days before they’re due to exchange. Both situations are avoidable. Here’s what you actually need to know.
Is It a Legal Requirement To Have An EPC When Selling a House?
Yes, absolutely. Under the Energy Performance of Buildings (England and Wales) Regulations 2012, you are legally required to have a valid Energy Performance Certificate in place before your property is marketed for sale. Not before exchange. Not before completion. Before it goes on the market — before the Rightmove listing goes live, before the board goes up, before the brochure is printed.
That’s the bit most sellers miss. They assume it’s something to sort out mid-sale, like a survey or a completion statement. It isn’t. The EPC needs to exist from day one of marketing, and it needs to be a valid one — meaning it was issued within the last ten years and is lodged on the national register.
If you already have an EPC from when you bought the property, check the date. A certificate issued eleven years ago is expired and won’t do. You’ll need a new one.
Who Is Responsible for Getting an EPC When Selling a House?
You are, as the seller — not your estate agent, not your solicitor. Estate agents have a duty to ensure an EPC is in place before they market your property, and a reputable agent will ask for it or arrange it on your behalf. But the legal obligation falls on the owner.
In practice, many estate agents will either chase you for it or offer to arrange one through a preferred supplier. There’s nothing wrong with that, but it’s worth knowing that you’re not obliged to use whoever they suggest. You’re free to instruct your own assessor, and in many cases that will be faster and cheaper than going through an agency referral. Estate agents have been known to charge a markup on EPC referrals — sometimes a significant one.
If your estate agent markets your property without a valid EPC in place — whether because they forgot to check or because you hadn’t sorted one — Trading Standards can pursue them for a penalty charge of up to £200. That doesn’t protect you from the wider consequences of the delay though, so it’s not a comfortable fallback position.
What Happens If Your EPC Expires Before Completion?
This one comes up more than you’d expect, particularly with properties that have been on the market for a long time or where a sale has fallen through once already. If your EPC was valid when you started marketing but expires during the sale process, you’ll need a new one before the transaction can complete.
Solicitors on both sides will check this, and buyers’ solicitors in particular are thorough about it. An expired EPC at the point of exchange is the kind of thing that holds up a completion date — which, when you’re in a chain, is not a problem that stays contained. It ripples.
If you’re selling a property that’s been on the market for a while, or that you bought close to ten years ago and had an EPC done at the time, it’s worth logging onto the national EPC register right now and checking the expiry date. It takes thirty seconds and could save you a stressful phone call at the worst possible moment.
Does Your EPC Rating Affect Your Sale Price?
More than it used to, and the gap is widening. A few years ago, most buyers barely glanced at the EPC. Now, with energy bills where they are, it’s a genuine consideration — particularly for first-time buyers who are stretching their budget and can’t afford to absorb high running costs on top of a mortgage.
Research has consistently shown that higher-rated properties sell for more and sell faster than lower-rated equivalents in the same area. The difference varies by property type and location, but studies have put the premium for an A or B rated home at anywhere between 5% and 14% compared to a D-rated equivalent. For a property worth £180,000 in Stockton or Darlington, that’s a meaningful number.
What this means practically is that if your property sits at an E or F, it’s worth getting an updated assessment and looking seriously at the recommendations report. Sometimes the improvements needed to move from an E to a D — or a D to a C — are less expensive than sellers assume. Loft insulation, heating controls, a modern thermostat: these aren’t always big-ticket items, and the return on a sale price can be disproportionate to the outlay.
Does an EPC When Selling a House Affect the Buyer’s Mortgage?
Increasingly, yes. Green mortgage products — which offer preferential rates for higher-rated properties — are becoming more mainstream. Several major lenders now offer reduced rates for properties rated A or B, and some are beginning to factor energy efficiency into their broader affordability assessments.
From a seller’s perspective, this matters because a buyer’s ability to obtain their preferred mortgage product can be tied to your property’s EPC rating. A low rating doesn’t necessarily kill a sale, but it can complicate financing, and in a competitive market that’s a disadvantage worth addressing if you can.
Are There Any Exemptions To Needing an EPC When Selling a House?
Yes, a small number. The most commonly cited ones are:
- Listed buildings — where the alterations required to improve energy performance would unacceptably alter the character of the building. This is a specific exemption and doesn’t apply simply because a property is old or unusual.
- Temporary buildings — structures intended to be used for less than two years.
- Standalone buildings under 50m² — very small detached structures.
- Industrial sites, workshops, and non-residential agricultural buildings — where the heating demands are low.
If you think your property might be exempt, don’t assume — check. The listed building exemption in particular is often misunderstood. Being in a conservation area doesn’t exempt you. Being in a Victorian terrace doesn’t exempt you. Only properties with listed building consent, where compliance would alter the character of the building, may qualify. If in doubt, speak to your local authority or a qualified assessor before marketing.
How Quickly Can You Get an EPC Before Selling?
Usually very quickly — this is not something that should hold up your sale if you act promptly. Most accredited assessors, including us, can typically get to a property within a day or two and lodge the certificate the same day as the inspection. From booking to having a valid certificate live on the register, you’re usually looking at 48 hours or less.
The inspection itself takes around 45 to 60 minutes for a standard property. There’s no need to deep clean the house or prepare anything special — the assessor needs access to the loft hatch, the boiler, the meter, and a clear enough look at the rooms to identify construction type, glazing, and lighting. That’s it.
Where people run into delays is when they leave it until the last minute or try to book through a platform that subcontracts to whoever is cheapest and available — sometimes meaning a longer wait and no control over who turns up. Booking directly with a local assessor is nearly always faster and more straightforward.
What Is t he Cost of an EPC When Selling a House?
For a standard domestic property, you’re looking at somewhere between £50 and £90 depending on the size and type of the property. A two-bed terrace will sit at the lower end; a larger detached towards the upper end. It’s a one-off cost, valid for ten years, and in the context of a property sale it’s genuinely one of the smaller line items.
What it isn’t worth doing is shopping purely on price. A £35 EPC from a provider who rushes the inspection, doesn’t access the loft, or uses default assumptions rather than recording what’s actually there, can end up costing you far more than the saving — either through an artificially low rating that affects your sale price, or through inaccurate data that causes problems with grant applications down the line. We’ve written more about this in our guide to EPC costs if you want the full breakdown.
Getting an EPC Near You Across the North East
We carry out EPC assessments across the whole of Teesside and the wider North East, so whether you’re selling a property in Middlesbrough, looking for an EPC in Hartlepool ahead of a spring listing, or need a certificate turned around quickly for a flat in Darlington, we can almost certainly help. We cover a radius of roughly 40-50 miles from Middlesbrough, which takes in Redcar and Cleveland to the east, Durham and Chester-le-Street to the north, and everything in between.
If you’re based locally and searching for an EPC near me, you don’t need a national platform to find one — a local assessor who knows the area and its housing stock will do the job better and faster. Check our dedicated pages for EPC in Middlesbrough, EPC in Stockton-on-Tees, and EPC in Hartlepool for more local detail, or get in touch directly and we’ll confirm whether we cover your postcode.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I put my house on the market without an EPC?
No — not legally. The requirement is that a valid EPC must be commissioned before the property is marketed. Your estate agent should not list the property without one in place. If they do, they face a potential penalty from Trading Standards. As the seller, you’re also exposed. Sort the EPC before you brief the agent, not after.
Who pays for the EPC when selling a house?
The seller pays. It’s your legal responsibility to have one in place, so the cost sits with you. Some estate agents include it in their service or bundle it with conveyancing referrals — but check what you’re actually being charged. You may find it cheaper and faster to book directly with an accredited assessor yourself.
What happens if my EPC shows a poor rating — can I still sell?
Yes. There is no minimum EPC rating required to sell a residential property. The rating must be disclosed to buyers, but a low rating doesn’t legally prevent a sale from proceeding. It may affect buyer interest, negotiating position, or mortgage options — but it does not block the transaction. You’re not obliged to carry out improvements, though it’s worth considering whether targeted work could meaningfully improve your asking price.
Can I use the same EPC I had when I bought the property?
Only if it’s still valid — meaning it was issued within the last ten years and is lodged on the national EPC register. Check the date on your existing certificate at gov.uk/find-energy-certificate before assuming it’s fine. If significant work has been done to the property since it was issued — a new boiler, added insulation, an extension — a fresh assessment would likely produce a better rating, which is worth having for the sale.
Does the estate agent sort the EPC or do I have to?
Legally it’s your responsibility, though many agents will arrange it on your behalf or chase you for it before listing. Don’t assume they’ve sorted it. Confirm in writing before your property goes live. If they offer to organise one through a preferred provider, ask what the total charge is — there’s often a referral margin built in that you can avoid by booking directly. Our FAQ page covers more of the common questions around the process.
Ready to Get Your EPC Sorted Before You Sell?
An EPC when selling a house is one of those things that’s easy to arrange and easy to forget — right up until it becomes a problem. Get it done before you brief your estate agent, not after, and use an assessor you can actually get hold of if there are questions about the certificate.
EPCIQ covers Middlesbrough, Stockton, Hartlepool, Darlington, Redcar, Durham, and everywhere in between. Certificates are lodged the same day as the inspection, pricing is clear upfront, and we can usually arrange a visit within 48 hours.
Read what our clients say on our testimonials page, or find out more about us and the way we work. Get in touch today and we’ll get you booked in.