Real estate diagnosis professionals raise their voices in the face of a political calendar taking precedence over common sense

At stake: the success of the energy renovation of housing and existing buildings, essential for a successful collective energy transition. And respect for the professionals in the sector who will be responsible for it in the field, with individuals.

On March 3, SIDIANE was the first professional organization to officially ask Emmanuelle WARGON, Minister Delegate for Housing, to postpone the mandatory energy audit. Instead of September 1, 2022, SIDIANE recommended that it enter into force on January 1, 2023 so that all real estate diagnosis companies are ready to carry it out. Other organizations have supported this approach by suggesting an identical timetable.

However, the decree setting the terms of the new energy audit was released today. The date of September 1st making it mandatory for single-ownership accommodation is maintained. We would like to say "whatever the cost"! Still, this iniquitous decision had to be laughable. Which is not the case.

To date, the implementation of the mandatory energy audit is far from being operational.

The treatment reserved for it by the public authorities is the same as that of the new DPE last year, with the effects that we know on the sectors of real estate diagnosis, real estate, housing... The DPE is undergoing d elsewhere every day for weeks the wrath of the press. So much so that as President of SIDIANE, Jean-Christophe PROTAIS took the floor to denounce this "DPE Gate" and defend this real estate diagnosis which is a powerful and essential tool for the success of energy renovation, despite its launch already chaotic, for lack of listening to professionals by the public authorities. It is foreseeable that the same causes will produce the same effects with the energy audit. Will the decision of the day of maintenance call another of suspension or postponement next June or after the summer? It's hard to follow. Even less to anticipate, which is however the characteristic of the heads of companies of real estate diagnosis.

With the maintenance of the energy audit schedule, the Government wants to give the impression that it is holding its reform. But he is actually taking a double risk.

First risk: for the second time in 1 year, the Government is unilaterally launching regulations and a tool that is not yet finalized, not made reliable and for which the sector has not been able to prepare properly. Indeed, the methods and software for calculating and costing work have not been stabilized, the outlines of the reports are still under study, the content of professional training is left to the discretion of training organizations on the basis of this which exists for incentive energy audits… while professional certifications will be obtained by practicing; in other words, the first energy audits delivered to end customers will be delivered by professionals still in training, not certified.

Second risk: The government will create of its own doing a transitional situation of non-law: a legal in-between. De juri, the energy audit will be required. De facto, it will be inapplicable and unapplied. Remember that the Climate and Resilience Law of August 24, 2021 provides for the obligation, even before any visit to the property concerned, to deliver to the potential buyer of an energy strainer (label F and G of the DPE) an energy audit.

Do we seriously believe that the actors of the real estate as the private individuals who will sell their property directly will respect this law whereas the energy audits will not be carried out in time? Or, another expected perverse effect, is there not a risk that the audits will be carried out without the required requirement, with errors, ill-advised advice and this triggering risky financing by public aid for inappropriate work? ?

In addition, the Government has counted on a volume of energy audits to be carried out based on 2018 figures, obtained from the proportions of F and G labels determined with the old methods of calculating the energy performance diagnosis. This should represent around 4,8 million housing units according to Government figures from February 2021.

The reality is different. Since November 2021, a good number of DPEs have been carried out. SIDIANE was able to observe that the number of properties with labels F and G is much higher than that estimated by the Government. Consequently, we must mechanically expect a stronger demand for energy audits than expected. And this, without even taking into account what real estate professionals tell us: more and more owners are selling the energy sieves of their heritage.

So many factors that will increase the demand for energy audits without the sector being able to respond quantitatively but also qualitatively. At the risk of leading to an upsurge in disputes about them, in particular between sellers and buyers of real estate, then between sellers and real estate diagnosticians who carried out the audits.

In this context, SIDIANE firmly and solemnly reiterates the postponement of the energy audit to January 1, 2023.