Condominiums: what is the impact of the new regulations in terms of energy performance?

What impact will these laws have on landlords? How should they organize themselves? What role does the syndic of co-ownership play in these procedures? Cotoit, online condominium trustee, takes stock and explains the steps to follow to be in phase.

What is RE2020?

RE2020 aims to better control construction costs and increase the skills of professionals through a gradual transformation of construction techniques, industrial sectors and energy solutions.

Its main measures:

• Addition of performance measurement criteria: in addition to the thermal insulation of buildings and energy consumption (heating and water), it will regulate their energy production and their impact on the environment (state and consumption installed devices);
• Increased energy performance objective: the energy expenditure of new buildings built under RE 2020 must be 0 kWh/m²/year (compared to 50 kWh/m²/year currently);
• Consideration of the environmental impact of the materials that will be used for construction.

Its main goal remains better energy performance and increased comfort in buildings, in order to reduce their carbon impact. Renewable energies therefore have a special place in this regulation.

The RE 2020 is structured around three main axes:

• improve the energy performance and reduce the consumption of new buildings, in particular through insulation, regardless of the heating method installed;
• reduce the environmental impact of new buildings, taking into account all of the building's emissions over its life cycle, from the construction phase to the end of its life;
• adapt buildings to extreme climatic conditions, in particular the heat waves which are expected to become more and more frequent due to global warming.

What are the consequences for co-owners and trustees?

Two major innovations emerge in terms of energy performance diagnosis:

• From September 1, 2022, owners selling a dwelling belonging to energy classes D, E, F or G with a primary energy consumption of at least 331 kilowatt hours per m² and per year will have to carry out an energy audit.
• The ÉLAN law makes the DPE enforceable, which can serve as a basis for carrying out renovation work. The aim is to encourage owners and lessors to undertake work to improve energy performance in their homes or condominiums.

In this context, co-ownership trustees will increasingly play the role of advising and informing co-owners. They will also be responsible for setting up the necessary energy renovation work within the condominiums.

Achievement of ECD: what to do if it is not good?

An energy performance diagnosis (EPD), a document which makes it possible to estimate the energy consumption and the greenhouse gas emission rates of a dwelling, must be carried out in the event of the sale or rental of a accommodation and must be included in the technical diagnostic file (DDT) given to the purchaser or tenant.

If the conclusions of the DPE are not good, it will be necessary to undertake work in the housing or the common parts concerned. A dwelling with an energy class between E and G is considered an energy-intensive dwelling, it is therefore recommended to carry out work, for example to insulate the attic, floors, walls or roof or replace a boiler, windows or make other improvements to the home.

“In the event of work in the private areas, it is the co-owner, the sole decision maker in the matter, who will have to bear the cost. On the other hand, for work affecting the common areas or the exterior appearance of the building, the cost will be distributed, after the vote - and validation - of this work at the general meeting of the co-owners”, mentions Luigi Del Moral, General Manager at Cotoit.

However, exceptions are provided for renting a property in DPE E, F or G. If a co-owner wishes to carry out work but the rest of the co-ownership does not follow suit, he will not be penalized. On the other hand, he will still have to show his credentials, in particular by proving that he has done all the work that was possible for him to do in the private areas and by providing the elements demonstrating that he has voted for the collective work project in the AG or that he has proposed this work to the syndic or to the union council.

What role does the syndic of co-ownership play in these procedures?

The syndic of co-ownership must be present to advise the co-owners, inform them or even manage most of the stages for all that concerns the realization of the DPE, the organization of the works, the votes in AG or even the improvement of the energy performances of housing…

In particular, he must:

• take charge of carrying out the energy balance sheet (DPE or energy audit) of a dwelling, from the vote on its completion to its presentation to the co-owners at the general meeting, including the competition between service providers;
• if necessary, vote on the completion of the energy saving work recommended in the DPE during the GA;
• find all funding aids
• carry out the energy saving works that have been voted on in the AGM and monitor the smooth running of the entire site
• ensure acceptance of energy saving works.