Search the sitePROPERTYlinks |
DEA- Domestic Energy Assessors
publication date: Jun 23, 2008
|
Mike Day,
Managing Director
of Integra Property Services
reports on his foray into the
new world of the DEA
It was Spring 2007 and the future
for residential property was bright.
In fact the future was to become
dominated by multi coloured graphs
showing prospective home buyers the
energy efficiency and environmental
impact of the properties they might
be interested in buying. The era of
Energy Performance Certificates was
about to begin and, along with their
inclusion in Home Information Packs,
the Government, despite the huge
concerns of the industry, hailed the
arrival of a new improved home buying
process. My own business, Integra Property
Services, decided that we would make
the investment and qualify as Domestic
Energy Assessors, not because we
believed the hype being bandied about
by the training organisations that this
would be our route to fame and fortune
but primarily because we wanted to be
in control of our own destiny in regards
the production of Home Information
Packs (HIPs). As a Chartered Surveyor of many years
standing albeit one that has never
actually carried out a survey, I decided
I would put myself through the training
and accreditation process first, before
getting my son Tom, who works with
me, to follow. The idea was that I could
be qualified by the June 1st deadline
and our business would be ready for
the introduction of HIPs. The Course
I chose to use the NAEA and Elmhurst
training and accreditation route primarily
on grounds of cost. These were around
£2000 each which covered training/
registration, exam fees, criminal record
checks and first year accreditation.
In addition we incurred hotel and
travel costs as the courses were in the
Midlands and Yorkshire. I estimate the
whole process for the two of us cost
£5000 in direct costs and around six
working days each in terms of time (and
therefore lost opportunity cost). The programme and exams were
straightforward and I “qualified” in
around six weeks. Actually getting
accredited added considerable
delay to the process as there was
clearly a “bottleneck” of applications
in the system but eventually I was
given the green light as a Domestic
Energy Assessor (DEA). Of course in
the meantime the Government had
delayed the June 1st implementation on
the grounds that there were insufficient
DEAs available. Annoyingly this delay
gave all of my ill-prepared competitors
time to get themselves organised. My son Tom duly followed and was
qualified and accredited some three
months later. This gave us two front line
sales individuals with DEA capability. One year later So here we are, one year on from
our initial foray into Domestic Energy
Assessment and time to reflect on the
success or otherwise of our decision to
qualify as Assessors. In mid 2008 we find ourselves in
possibly the toughest market conditions
I have experienced in my 32 years in
the business. Property values are falling,
there is a combination of a lack of
instructions and also a lack of buyers,
the media make things worse and it is
hard work to find motivated sellers and
buyers who are willing to commit. With regard to Domestic Energy
Assessment, there are far too many
assessors for the market volumes (ironic
given that implementation was initially
delayed supposedly due to a lack of
numbers) and therefore supply and
demand (or lack of) has seen DEAs at
the bottom of the food chain, obtaining
fees in the region of just £45 per job if
they are taking their work from panel
providers acting for HIP companies. Domestic Energy Assessment was never
going to be a core activity for Integra
Property Services but we are running
at income levels some 65% below my
initial projections of a year ago through
a combination of reduced volumes and
lower average fees per job. Certainly if
we were set up as DEAs only, we would,
as many have already, thrown in the
towel and found something else to do.
However, as part of our estate agency
offering it has enabled us to control
our HIP production and generate an
additional income stream. After a year
we have just about recovered our initial
training and accreditation costs. Of course being eternal optimists, we see
the introduction of Energy Performance
Certificates on rental property from
October as an opportunity, although
it remains to be seen what value per job can be extracted. Clearly
EPC production on our own letting
instructions will be a profitable activity
as it is now on our HIP production. It
will be a question of whether panel
work is worth having or whether we can
organise “partnership” arrangements
with other local businesses on a viable
basis. I also feel there is some real dishonesty
in the adverts still being run by DEA
training companies promising huge
returns for people qualifying as
independent assessors. Given that to
get decent regular volumes of work,
an independent DEA probably has to
take work from panel providers and this
means that there are certainly no “get
rich quick schemes” available here.
Overall, I believe our decision to invest
and qualify as DEAs was the right one.
Of course results have not been as
good as expected but market conditions
play a huge part in this. Because we see
EPC production as an integral part of
our agency offering, we like the control
element and the reinforcement of our
service ethic, as we are not at the mercy
of having unknown DEAs attending our
properties and dealing with our clients,
and we are not paying a “middle
man” for the privilege of organising an
inspection. For estate agents with their
own DEAs, I believe these last points
are crucial. And so, green with envy, blue
with despair or red with anger? If I am honest, I guess I have experienced
a mix of all three with a little yellow
optimism for the rental opportunity.
There were moments in the early days
when I was green with envy for my competitors who had made no effort to
invest or get themselves organised and
yet who were not at a disadvantage due
to Government delays etc. I have been
blue with despair at the lack of volume
and the stranglehold that the big panel
providers have in driving down the value
per job and I have been red with anger
with the Government whose indecision
and inability to listen has contributed to
already difficult conditions. I am, however, like all good estate agents,
a positive person by nature and believe
that the fact that we are Domestic Energy
Assessors will pay greater dividends in the
longer term. It is producing an additional
(albeit small) revenue stream at a time
when this is most useful and the future, if
not bright, is not as bleak as some would
have us believe. Michael S Day MBA FRICS FNAEA IRRV F Land
Inst is Managing Director of Integra Property
Services. Integra Property Services have been
voted best estate agency in Buckinghamshire
in both the 2006 and 2008 Estate Agent of the
Year Awards.
Michael can be contacted on 01753 480430
or by email at msd@integra-ps.com. NFOPP Level 3 Award in Domestic Energy Assessment What is a domestic energy assessor?
Since 14th December 2007 every home offered for sale, no matter what size, must have a Home Information Pack which will be provided to prospective buyers. A mandatory part of this Home Information Pack is the Energy Performance Certificate (EPC), which provides information on the energy efficiency, heating costs and carbon emissions of the property. From 1st October 2008, all rental properties with a new tenancy in England and Wales will also be required to have an EPC. EPCs on rental properties will be valid for 10 years and provided to each new tenant within that period. EPCs are produced by accredited (licensed) Domestic Energy Assessors (DEA), and in order to join an accreditation scheme a candidate must first gain an approved qualification in Domestic Energy Assessment. The qualification The NFOPP Level 3 Award in Domestic Energy Assessment is a nationally recognised qualification awarded by the Examinations Board of the National Federation of Property Professionals. This qualification is recognised as one which allow the holder to apply for certification as a Domestic Energy Assessor. The NFOPP Award in Domestic Energy Assessment is a Level 3 qualification within the National Qualifications Framework. This means it is broadly equivalent to A-Level standard. It is open to anyone to take, regardless of their past experience or age. You do not need any previous qualifications; just a good basic standard of English and numeracy. All parts of the examinations required to gain this qualification will be assessed in English. The NFOPP Examinations Board is an independent Awarding Body, recognised by the Office of the Qualifications and Examinations Regulator (Ofqual). The structure and marking
The qualification syllabus is divided into three Units: Unit 1: Legislation and Practice relating to the Provision of the Energy Performance Certificate Unit 2: Factors affecting production of Energy Performance Certificates Unit 3: Practical Assessment – Production of Energy Performance Certificates. Units 1 and 2 are assessed by examination. There are 35 multiple choice questions per Unit and candidates have 40 minutes per Unit in which to answer them. The pass mark is 80%. Candidates must answer all of the five mandatory questions in Unit 1 correctly; candidates not achieving 100% on section 1A will be deemed to have failed Unit 1 regardless of their mark on section 1B and will be required to re-sit all of Unit 1 again. Units can be taken separately or both at once. Unit 3 involves the production of five Energy Performance Certificates with supporting site notes and photographs/ sketches where appropriate. Two of these EPCs will be produced from information allocated to you. The remaining three must be carried out on actual domestic properties of your own choice, but those selected must include a flat/apartment and two houses of differing age and style. Instructions on the EPCs and supporting information which must be submitted will be provided once you are ready to start Unit 3. Assessment and marking of the EPCs will be carried out by Elmhurst Energy Systems Ltd under the direction and verification of the NFOPP Examinations Board. All three Units must be completed and passed within six months of the date of initial registration with the NFOPP; you are therefore advised to enrol for training before registering for the qualification.
Training for the qualification There are a number of organisations providing training leading to this qualification, through either classroom or distance learning or a mixture of both. Details of some of these and their contact information are given below. TRAINING SCHEMES Bluebox Partners Tel: 0845 260 3500 Property-careers.com Tel: 0800 731 6804 www.property-careers.com Elmhurst Energy Solutions Tel: 08700 850 490 www.elmhurstenergy.co.uk
DOMESTIC ENERGY ASSESSORS If you are already experienced in the production of EPCs then you may require less training and you should take advice from training organisations. How long will it take? This really depends on your commitments, how you undertake the necessary study and training, and if you have previous knowledge and/or experience in energy assessment or building construction. However, you should be able to complete the study and qualification within 6-8 weeks depending on the availability of training and examination sittings. You have 6 months from the date of registration with the NFOPP to complete the whole qualification, including any resits you may need to take. If you do not pass all three Units within this time, you will have to begin again and cover all associated costs. You do not have to be employed within these areas or have any previous experience in order to start your study or take the qualification. As a general guide, we estimate that those who are new to the profession will require approximately 200 hours of study/training/background reading. Those with experience may well require substantially less. What if i am already experienced in energy assessments or building construction? In the first instance you should contact a training provider to discuss your training needs. Those who have already undertaken study, have experience in or are recently accredited to RdSAP 2005 standards may require little or no training, and may also be able to use recent EPCs as part of the submission for Unit 3. There are no exemptions from the NFOPP examinations or assessment of EPCs. How do i take the examinations? The examinations for Units 1 and 2 must be taken via e-assessment at one of our test centres. Each exam consists of 35 multiple choice which you will have 40 minutes to answer. When you have completed your studies and are ready to sit the examinations you can book them using our on-line booking system. Exams can be booked a minimum of 7 days in advance and a maximum of 60 days. Examination fees are payable via debit or credit card when you book your test sitting. We regret that cheque payments cannot be accepted. The online booking system gives candidates the choice of the date and location of their examination. There are approximately 50 participating test centres throughout the UK which offer examinations regularly during working hours. The list of test centres can be found at the bottom of the page. You must enroll with Elmhurst Energy Systems Ltd for assessment of Unit 3, their contact details are given above.
Results and certification You will be notified of the results of each Unit by post within 28 days. If you have passed you will receive a certificate confirming your success within four weeks. The results for Units 1 and 2 will show the mark achieved and for Unit 3 will simply state Pass/ Fail. If you fail either or both Unit 1 or 2 you may retake as soon as you wish. If you have failed Unit 3 you are required to submit five new EPCs following the guidelines above. Costs This will vary depending on where you access your training and how much training you need. Training providers will be able to advise on their costs; contact details of training providers are given above. Examination fees will be payable to the NFOPP. Registration and certification fees, which must be paid before you sit any Units of the qualification, are £340. You will then need to pay examination fees to sit Units 1 and 2 when you enrol on-line for these – if you sit both Units together the cost will be £110; and £75 to sit one Unit only. These fees also apply to any resits needed. Registration, certification and examination fees are non-refundable. Getting started Before undertaking the Level 3 Award in Domestic Energy Assessment please familiarise yourself with the examination regulations and the syllabus. Once you have done so please contact one of the three training providers for details on the dates and locations for training and to enrol. Further studies If you wish to progress your studies you may wish to consider moving on to the Diploma in Home Inspection or to a foundation degree or HND in a relevant discipline such as building construction or surveying. Candidates with special needs Candidates with disabilities are encouraged to read the NFOPP Disability Policy and to contact the qualifications section at the NFOPP to discuss what adjustments might be made to enable them to take the qualification. The Disability Policy can be found on the NFOPP website.
Further information Further information on Home Information Packs, the Energy Performance Certificate and certification schemes can be found at: http://www.communities.gov.uk Helpline: 0207 944 4400 http://www.homeinformationpacks.gov.uk/Accreditation schemes After gaining the qualification you must join an accreditation scheme in order to become a certificated, accredited DEA. There are various mandatory requirements for certification and you may wish to contact the various schemes for further information about these requirements and the associated costs: Sava scheme: http://www.sava-cs.org.uk/ BRE scheme: http://www.bre.co.uk/service.jsp id=941 EPC Ltd: http://www.epc-solutions.co.uk Elmhurst scheme: http://www.elmhurstenergy.co.uk/article/nid/443 Northgate http://www.northgate-ispublicservices.com/solutions.php pageId=156 Quidos: http://www.quidos.co.uk Home Inspector Certification Ltd: http://www.hicertification.co.uk |
