Does a C-or-better EPC sell for more in BH20 4 (Dorset)?
A small premium for a better EPC here. In postcode sector BH20 4 (Dorset), comparing like with like — same floor area, property type, build period and year of sale — homes rated C or better sold for 3.9% more (95% range +1.2% to +6.8%). The raw gap is bigger: C+ homes sold for 6% more per square metre than D–G homes (median £3,667 vs £3,452, 1,030 sales 2015–2026), mostly because they are different homes. Across England and Wales the like-for-like figure is +1.2%. Data: HM Land Registry Price Paid to 30 September 2026 matched to the EPC register.
From the raw gap to like-for-like
The homes are not alike: C+ homes here have a median floor area of 88 m² against 85 m² for D–G; the most common build period is 2012 onwards for C+ and 1967–1975 for D–G; 54% of C+ and 55% of D–G sales are detached or semi-detached houses.
| Comparing C+ with D–G homes… | Difference | 95% range |
|---|---|---|
| Raw gap per m² (medians) | +6% | — |
| Whole price, nothing held equal | +6.1% | +1.2% to +11.3% |
| Same floor area | +6.2% | +3.2% to +9.3% |
| + same property type | +7.2% | +4.5% to +9.9% |
| + same build period | +7.5% | +4.2% to +11.0% |
| + same year of sale | +3.9% | +1.2% to +6.8% |
The first row compares median prices per m²; the second compares whole prices; each later row adds one more thing that must be equal, ending with the like-for-like premium (regression of log price; build period from the certificate, 12 bands). The raw gap per m² and the whole-price gap differ because C+ and D–G homes differ in size.
Sold prices by EPC band in BH20 4
| EPC band (last certificate before sale) | Sales | Median £ per m² |
|---|---|---|
| A | 1 | too few |
| B | 200 | £3,782 |
| C | 270 | £3,537 |
| D | 416 | £3,535 |
| E | 120 | £3,192 |
| F | 19 | £3,092 |
| G | 4 | too few |
A median is shown when a band has at least 10 sales.
C or better vs D–G, by property type
| Type | C+ sales | C+ £/m² | D–G sales | D–G £/m² |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Detached | 155 | £3,906 | 190 | £4,066 |
| Semi-detached | 98 | £3,484 | 118 | £3,176 |
| Terraced | 130 | £3,462 | 175 | £3,274 |
| Flat / maisonette | 88 | £3,752 | 76 | £3,213 |
Compared with the wider area
| Area | Sales | Like-for-like | 95% range |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sector BH20 4 | 1,030 | +3.9% | +1.2% to +6.8% |
| District BH20 | 2,827 | −2.1% | −3.8% to −0.4% |
| England and Wales | 1,000,000 (sample) | +1.2% | +0.9% to +1.5% |
Average gas use in BH20 4 (2024): meters vs certificates
A rough comparison: the certificate figure is an upper-bound estimate (primary energy including lighting, converted with one factor), so treat the share as an order of magnitude.
| Postcodes with published gas data (5+ meters) | 157 (2,634 meters) |
|---|---|
| Median gas use per meter (median of postcodes) | 8,692 kWh |
| Gas-heated homes with an EPC | 1,738 |
| Energy implied by their certificates (median) | 15,123 kWh |
| Metered gas as a share of the certificate figure (median of 147 postcodes) | 54% (middle half 48%–62%) |
Certificates by band imply: B 6,393 kWh (213 homes) · C 11,851 kWh (617 homes) · D 18,279 kWh (753 homes) · E 28,922 kWh (133 homes) · F 46,247 kWh (16 homes). Across England and Wales, real use is much closer to the certificate for A–C homes than for D–G homes, so the saving an upgrade promises is usually smaller than the certificate suggests.
Certificate energy = primary energy per m² × floor area ÷ 1.13, for homes whose latest certificate shows mains gas heating; it also covers lighting and other uses, so it is an upper bound for gas. DESNZ gas is weather-corrected and covers all meters in the postcode, with or without a certificate.
Can the local grid take heat pumps in BH20 4?
SSEN does not publish spare capacity for street substations, so this is the answer for the wider district fed by the Wareham Town primary substation (33/11 kV), not for your street. Its winter demand headroom for 2027 is 3.8 MVA (lowest of SSEN's scenarios) — room for about 2,230 heat pumps at 1.7 kW each, or 86% of the 2,600 gas-heated homes with an energy certificate in its supply area.
| Primary substation | Share of the sector's gas homes | Headroom 2027 | Gas homes in its area | Room for heat pumps | Headroom 2030 / 2035 (Holistic Transition) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wareham Town (upstream constraint) | 100% | 3.8 MVA | 2,600 | ≈ 2,230 (86%) | 26.3 / 21.8 MVA |
Across the sector, about 1,490 of 1,738 gas-heated homes (86%) could switch within the primary substations' 2027 headroom.
Caveat: a primary substation feeds a whole town or several villages. Your street's own substation can be full while the primary has room, and the other way round. Headroom: SSEN Network Scenario Headroom Report 2026, winter demand headroom after contracted connections (MVA ≈ MW). Homes: postcodes whose centre lies inside SSEN's published supply area (19 October 2026). A full primary substation means reinforcement (usually a delay), not a refusal. All areas and the method.
1,030 of 1,110 house and flat sales in the sector since 2015 (93%) were matched to a certificate.
How this is calculated
- Every standard sale (HM Land Registry Price Paid, category A) since January 2015 is matched to the latest energy certificate of the same address (postcode + house number or name + flat) lodged from 10 years before to 3 months after the sale; sales with no certificate or an ambiguous match are left out. Across England and Wales 92% of sales match.
- Price per m² uses the certificate's total floor area (15–1,000 m²).
- Like-for-like premium: regression of the log of price on “C or better”, log floor area, property type, the certificate's build period and the year of sale. The 95% range shows how precise the estimate is; when it includes zero, the data cannot tell the premium apart from none.
Caveats
- The band is the one on the certificate before the sale; certificates are a median 0.8 years old at the sale, but a quarter are over 4 years old and some homes were improved since.
- Condition, garden, parking, views and the exact position within the sector are not known; a premium could hide in them, or they could hide one.
- Individual sales and addresses are not shown.