Retrofitting existing homes
Australia has 10 million existing homes, most of which have poor energy and thermal performance.
Rajagopalan said government assistance was urgently needed in designing and rolling out an affordable thermal performance assessment program necessary to start the retrofitting process of existing homes.
“You can buy more energy efficient lights and appliances for your home, but it’s trickier and more expensive to retrofit a home to be more thermally efficient,” she said.
Rajagopalan said there was already a lot of information about retrofitting homes, but the reliability and accuracy of the information varied.
A potential solution was creating a “one-stop shop” on how to embark on retrofitting your home and the benefits of a thermally efficient home from verified sources.
“This will help manage home energy upgrades from start to finish and offer a smooth customer journey to ensure better outcomes,” she said.
Policy changes needed to help renters
Rajagopalan said Australian renters are at a disadvantage as they have little control over the thermal or energy efficiency of rental properties.
“Even with government subsidies for retrofitting rental properties to improve thermal or energy efficiency, these don't necessarily translate into action by landlords, or deter them from increasing rents after upgrades” she said.
In August last year, France introduced a climate and resilience law preventing landlords from increasing the cost of rent on properties with poor energy efficiency ratings (ranked F or G).
From January 2023, it has been illegal to rent the absolute least energy efficient properties in France.
More recently in Australia, Victoria introduced basic standards for rental homes that included window coverings, adequate ventilation and energy efficient heaters.