The Federal Office for Building and Regional Planning

Research Project: Field study on the evaluation of energy certificates for residential properties

Project briefing

  • Status Completed
  • Project duration November 2018 – December 2021
  • Programme Future Building

The introduction of the energy certificate is part of the implementation of the European Directive 2010/31/EU (formerly 2002/91/EC) on the overall efficiency of buildings. The energy certificate is also intended to make an important contribution to achieving climate protection goals, as its use will enable the savings potential in the building sector to be exploited more effectively. Its permanent establishment is intended to turn the energy efficiency of a building into an important selection criterion with regard to housing decisions and to enable the comparability of buildings based on their degree of energy efficiency. In the present study, a multi-perspective evaluation was carried out, which examines the energy certificate and its practical use, as well as the behaviours and cultural attitudes of various actors on the subject of energy consumption.

Background

In the light of recent debates on the global effects of man-made climate change, the pressure is growing to achieve climate protection goals. Housing stock plays an important role here, with CO2-emissions and the energy consumption of private households being the most relevant components.

In this context, the energy certificates for residential property represent an important regulatory tool for achieving societal climate protection goals and a sustainable housing stock. For the consumer, they are an essential source of information about the energy efficiency of the property. For property owners, they provide incentives to invest in energy-saving construction methods.

Since their introduction, the energy certificates and the regulatory framework associated with them have undergone further development.

Extensive experience with this instrument and its variants led to diverse views on the implementation and effectiveness of the energy certificate system. To assess and evaluate the effectiveness of energy certificates, the present study will focus on criteria such as transparency, effectiveness as well as consumer friendliness and acceptance.

Objective

In the course of the project, a multi-perspective evaluation was carried out, which examinesthe energy certificate and its practical use, as well as the behaviours and cultural attitudes of various actors regarding energy consumption. In addition to increasingknowledge regarding the use of energy certificates by different actors, a further aim of the evaluation was to determine design guidelines and potential improvements for the further development of the instrument.

The contractor for the research project was InWIS Research & Consulting GmbH, Bochum, in cooperation with EBZ Business School GmbH, Bochum and Fraunhofer Institute for Building Physics IBP, Stuttgart.

Contact us

  • Monika Schröder
    Federal Institute for Research on Building, Urban Affairs and Spatial Development
    Division WB 2 "Instrumente zur Emissionsminderung im Gebäudebereich"
    Phone: +49 228 99401-1636
    Email: monika.schroeder@bbr.bund.de

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