Green energy label gets even more valuable

The better insulated a home is, the more mortgage you get

House hunters are placing increasing value on the energy label, according to research by funda. A good energy label is not only beneficial for your energy consumption. From 2024, mortgage lenders will also take the energy efficiency of your house into account when calculating your maximum mortgage. At best, you can borrow up to 50,000 euros more.

Over a quarter (27%) of funda visitors consider the energy label more important now than six months ago. This is according to the funda Index, our quarterly research into the confidence, (re)buying plans and behaviour of people who look on funda.

Earlier, we saw that house hunters are increasingly filtering by energy label. Most people search specifically for houses with label A, but labels B and C are also often ticked. This picture is in line with the willingness to make a future house more sustainable: 61% of house seekers on funda say they are willing to do so.

More mortgage for energy-efficient house

Buying a house with a good energy label provides several financial benefits. First of all, a lower energy bill, because the more energy-efficient your house is, the lower your consumption. From next year, there will be another advantage: the higher the energy label, the more you can borrow on top of your maximum mortgage. This can go up to 50,000 euros.

A++++ (with energy performance guarantee*) €50,000
A++++ (without energy performance guarantee) € 40,000
A+++ € 30.000
A+ or A++ € 20,000
A or B € 10,000
C or D € 5,000
E, F or G € 0
*An energy performance guarantee gives you the certainty that the measures will continue to give the promised energy savings.

Energy bill counts in calculation

The benefit is a result of new guidelines drawn up by the Ministry of Finance for calculating your maximum mortgage. At the moment, mortgage lenders look at your income and monthly expenses, but from next year, this means your energy bill will also count. Those with lower heating costs will have lower monthly expenses and can therefore pay more mortgage, is the thinking behind this. In this way, the government wants to make energy-efficient houses accessible to more people.

Energy label improvement? Then borrow more

People who want to invest in making their homes more sustainable can also borrow more as a result of the new guidelines. For houses with the lowest energy labels (E, F, G) this is an extra 20,000 euros and for houses with labels C and D 15,000 euros. If you buy or own a house with a higher energy label (up to a maximum of A+++), you can borrow a maximum of 10,000 euros extra. You must then spend this money on insulation, solar panels or other forms of sustainability. This will increase the effect of the energy label on the home value of a house, several experts predict.