Efficient-home features remain concentrated in pricier properties, Rightmove finds
Nearly two-thirds of home movers (63%) would ideally like their home to generate most or all of its own energy, according to Rightmove’s 2026 Greener Homes Report. Just 8% would prefer to remain fully reliant on the grid.
More than half (53%) said recent energy price rises have increased their interest in solar panels and home battery storage. Since 2022, mentions of heat pumps in newly listed homes have risen 151%, while mentions of solar panels are up 94%. The report draws on more than 17 million EPC certificates, almost 30 million listings and a survey of 1,062 UK consumers in August.
Bills remain a pressure point. Ofgem’s price cap rose 4% on 1 October to £1,723 for a typical household.
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Heat, bills and cooling
Hotter summers are also shifting priorities. Some 87% of movers said a home’s ability to stay cool matters when choosing where to live, and 45% said their current home does not cope well in hot weather. Searches for homes for sale with air conditioning rose 104% over last summer.
Rightmove’s Energy Bills Tracker estimates annual bills of £706 for an EPC A-rated home, against £2,337 across all homes. An EPC G-rated property faces £6,379, more than nine times the A-rated figure.
Some 49% of homes for sale and 61% of rental homes are now rated EPC C or above, up from 40% and 52% in Rightmove’s earlier comparison.
Greener features sit at the top of the market
Rightmove said many of these features are concentrated in higher-priced homes. Properties advertised with air conditioning average an asking price of £947,509, against a national average of £367,440. Homes mentioning heat pumps average £545,220, and those mentioning solar panels £412,901.
New builds show what is achievable. Some 89% are rated EPC A or B, against 6% of resale homes. Almost a quarter (23%) achieve an A rating, compared with 1% of resale properties. Wales has the highest share of EPC A-rated new builds at 54%, followed by the North East at 44% and the East Midlands at 31%.
The gap between ambition and action
Some 74% of movers surveyed believe more should be done to help households improve their home’s energy efficiency. Yet only 5% of homeowners currently rank green improvements as a priority. Rightmove said affordability remains a significant barrier.
“We’re seeing growing interest in homes that give people more control over how their energy is generated, stored and used. Several years of energy price volatility have encouraged more households to think about reducing their reliance on the grid and becoming more energy independent,” Colleen Babcock, Rightmove’s property expert, said.
“The challenge is that many of the improvements needed to make Britain’s homes more energy efficient and climate resilient remain out of reach for a large proportion of households. Stable, long-term support will be essential to help more people make these changes.”
Greg Jackson, founder and chief executive of Octopus Energy, said the report shows “a massive shift in consumer sentiment around electrification at home”. He said Octopus has seen demand for heat pumps double.
“Greener homes are not only cheaper to run, they also reduce our reliance on a system still controlled by global fossil fuel markets. They mean we take back control of our energy bills, and our independence,” Jackson said.
Brody Isaac, head of sustainability at The Hill Group, said: “As hotter summers and more frequent extreme weather become a reality for UK homeowners, climate resilience is becoming an increasingly important consideration in how homes are designed and built.”
What it means for brokers
Clients may increasingly ask how a home’s energy performance affects its value and running costs. Several lenders offer green mortgage products, typically rate discounts, cashback or enhanced borrowing for A- or B-rated homes. Rightmove’s data suggests the best-performing homes are also the priciest, so affordability conversations may matter as much as product choice.
