Building Energy Rating (BER)

From 1 January 2009, anyone selling or renting a property in Ireland must by law provide a building energy rating which must be carried out by an accredited Assessor.

The assessment is a comprehensive assessment which takes into account the insulation properties of all the building elements, solar gains, ventilation losses, thermal bridging, heating system efficiency etc. Once carried out, the certificate you receive is valid for 10 years.
The rating scale is very much like that of domestic electrical goods, with A being a low or passive energy house, and G being an extremely energy-inefficient building.
Evidence shows already that properties with good energy ratings are more desirable for both the sales and rental markets.