Oil or gas boiler, bad insulation devalue residential property in Germany

Bad insulation and the use of gas- or oil-based heating systems increasingly eat into the market value of residential property in Germany, according to a report by news agency dpa. The price gap between energy-efficient homes and unrenovated ones is set to further widen in the coming years and economists, estate agents, and property experts all expect homes heated with fossil fuels to sell at lower values than those fitted with low-carbon heating systems .

"Prices fluctuate depending on the age, location and, increasingly, the energy efficiency class of the property," Oliver Adler, real estate expert at Bausparkasse Schwäbisch Hall, a building society, told dpa. "For properties with an energy efficiency rating of D or worse that have not been retrofitted, price reductions of 20 to 30 percent can be expected in the medium to long term." Homes with minimum energy requirements get an efficiency rating of "A", with the least efficient homes getting a "G" ranking.

Germany still largely relies on fossil fuels to heat its buildings. However, heating with gas is set to become more expensive as higher grids fees – resulting from the costs of decommissioning gas networks – fall on fewer consumers. Germany aims to replace fossil heating with climate-friendly heat pumps, geothermal energy and district heating in its push to become climate neutral by 2045.

The rate of energy-efficient housing renovations in Germany improved slightly in the last couple of years, but remains far below the levels needed to reach the country’s climate targets for the building sector, according to a survey by the Ariadne energy transition research alliance.

Climate change could have a major impact on property prices in the coming decades, according to the Network for the Greening of the Financial System, an international working group of central banks and supervisory bodies, dpa reported. After a series of serious floods in Germany, the country's insurance industry said climate resilience should be put at the forefront of the reconstruction and repair of homes damaged by storms. At the same time, homes face increasing risk of overheating in summer.