Is an energy certificate compulsory to sell a flat? Is it true that the worst-rated ones will be banned from sale?

Question

José Manuel Alburquerque · Accepted Answer

Yes. To sell your flat you must have a registered energy performance certificate, include the label showing its rating in adverts and attach a copy to the contract. If you do not, the sale is valid, but you risk a fine. It is not true that the worst-rated flats will be banned from sale, because the 2024 European directive sets savings targets for each country's housing stock as a whole, not a minimum rating for each flat. Moreover, Spain has not yet approved any legislation to implement it. What you must do when selling Have the certificate drawn up by a qualified professional and register it. In Catalonia it is entered in the register of the “Institut Català d'Energia”, the Catalan energy agency. The owner pays for it. Include the energy label, with its rating, in every offer and advert for the sale, including on property portals. Attach a copy of the registered certificate and of the label to the contract of sale. Under the royal decree that regulates it, the certificate is valid for ten years at most, or five if the rating is G. If it has expired, you must renew it before selling. There are few exceptions, such as stand-alone buildings with less than 50 square metres of usable floor area or some officially protected buildings. A similar obligation applies to letting, which is another matter. If the flat is sold without a certificate The sale is not void. What is breached is an administrative obligation, which can be punished with a fine. Spain's national land and urban regeneration act sets three bands according to the seriousness of the infringement, from 300 to 600 euros, from 601 to 1.000 euros and from 1.001 to 6.000 euros. If the profit obtained from the infringement is greater, the fine is equal to that profit. If the certificate is missing, the notary will point this out. What the European directive really says Directive (EU) 2024/1275, on the energy performance of buildings, has been in force since May 2024 and Member States had until May 2026 to implement it. For housing, each country must ensure that the average energy consumption of its residential buildings as a whole falls by at least 16 % by 2030 and by at least 20 % to 22 % by 2035, compared with 2020. At least 55 % of that reduction must come from renovating the 43 % of residential buildings with the worst performance. To achieve this, each Member State can use minimum energy performance standards, grants or technical advice, but the directive does not impose a minimum rating on each home or ban selling or letting it because of its rating. The mandatory minimum standards are for buildings that are not homes, such as offices. The European Commission's original proposal did provide for minimum ratings for each home, but this did not make it into the text that was adopted. It remains to be seen what measures Spain will choose when it implements the directive.