Energy conscious home buyers make a ‘B’ line for Westwood
Checking the energy efficiency rating of a home before you buy could save you hundreds of pounds a year.
All Beal’s new homes at Westwood are achieving an impressive energy efficiency rating of B, comparing favourably with the average C rating of new homes built in the Yorkshire and Humberside region.*
It is an achievement of which Beal Homes, a family company building new homes in East Yorkshire for over forty years, is proud and one that is appreciated by a new generation of energy conscious home buyers.
At Westwood, Kingswood Parks, Beal’s top of the range, four bedroom, detached Carlton has won a B rating of 84 per cent efficiency and other Beal home designs at Westwood are securing B ratings of 83 per cent – compared with the average new homes rating in the region of 78.3 per cent *.
What does this mean in money terms? As an example, the difference in the cost of lighting, heating and hot water between an older property with an average energy efficiency rating of F, and a new home with a C rating could be as much as £1000 per year. So, with an even more efficient B rated Beal property home owners stand to make even greater savings.
It is no wonder energy efficiency is now a key factor in choosing a home for house hunters like Daren and Stephanie Pinkney. The Pinkney family moved to a smart, detached Runswick at Westwood in October. Having built three of their previous homes themselves, the Pinkneys appreciate how modern construction methods save energy.
“With new homes everything – windows, insulation, heating systems – is to the latest specification,” says Daren Pinkney. “You need to spend a lot of money on an older house to bring it anywhere near the standards of a new one.
“Our home has a new generation of heating system with two zone programming, which means we can set the upstairs heating separately so we are not heating it unnecessarily to be warm downstairs. Stephanie has memories of living in big, cold houses so it’s great to enjoy the warmth here without the same worry about bills.
“House design is important too, The Runswick has also been really well designed so that we get lots of natural light in the house,” he said.
Warmth was also high on the list of ‘must haves’ for Charlotte Parker and Christopher Miles. They moved into a Windsor at Westwood in December.
Memories of growing up in a big Edwardian house were in Charlotte’s mind when the couple were house hunting. “I love older houses, but eventually my parents left my childhood home because the bills were ridiculous,” she said. “New homes are less expensive to run - everything is new, including the appliances, which are all A rated. It’s brilliantly warm and, with a smart meter, we can monitor and manage energy usage.”
The consistently good energy ratings of the homes at Westwood are achieved through careful design and building quality, says Beal Homes. New initiatives, like smart meters and two zone heating, are also contributing to the B ratings, says Richard Beal.
“We set ourselves tough targets and are pleased that every one of our home designs at Westwood is achieving a B rating,” he said.
“However, we’re not complacent and continue to explore ways of improving energy efficiency still further, keeping up to date with new technology and looking at how renewable energy can be used in future.”
Westwood, Runnymede Avenue, Kingswood Parks, Hull
Show home open daily 10am to 5pm.
Beal Homes free phone 0800 6121216.
http://beal-homes.net/development/westwood-kingswood-parks/
ENDS
Editor’s notes
*Taken from the report ‘Communities and Local Government Code for Sustainable Homes and Energy Performance of Buildings: Cumulative and Quarterly Data for England, Wales and Northern Ireland up to end of September 2011’
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