As a landlord, you can get various grants from the UK government to help you improve your property to ensure it is fit for purpose for your tenants and fit for purpose for the future of the UK as a whole. With grants relating to energy efficiency, modernising your home for the future, transforming your home for disabled tenants, and grants for significant repairs on offer, you can find something that will help you make your home a more attractive option on the rental market.
Owning rental properties can be a costly endeavour, but with the right support from a government scheme or grant, you’ll be able to make improvements to your home at a reduced cost.
Free Insulation Scheme can help you find the right grants and insulation installers to transform your rental properties.
What Energy Efficiency Grants Are Available For Landlords?
- Energy Company Obligation 4 (ECO4)
- Local Authority Eligibility Flexibility (LA Flex)
- Great British Insulation Scheme (GBIS)
- Boiler Upgrade Scheme (BUS)
- Home Upgrade Grant (HUG 2) – England Only
- Warm Homes Programme – Wales Only
- Affordable Warmth Scheme – Northern Ireland Only
- Warmer Homes Scotland – Scotland Only
Bold schemes are available across all/most of the UK. We’ll talk about these schemes in greater detail below.
Closed Energy Efficiency Grants For UK Landlords
It’s also worth noting that some grants for improving your property’s energy performance certificate have now closed:
- Nest Scheme – Wales Only
- Green Homes Grant
- Sustainable Warmth Funding
What Is ECO4/LA Flex? Am I Eligible?
ECO4 and LA Flex are examples of eco grants in the UK designed to improve UK homes through energy efficiency measures, targeting the least energy efficient homes. Both are delivered by UK government approved installers and are largely funded by energy companies who profit from high energy bills in inefficient homes because tenants have to heat their home more to feel comfortable. As a result, the big energy companies in the UK are now obliged to help.
The aim of these schemes are to improve minimum energy efficiency standards in UK households with a poor EPC rating. In order to qualify you’ll need to ensure your current tenant is:
- Living in a home with an EPC rating of D or below
- In receipt of a means tested benefit
- Have a household income below £31,000 per year
As a landlord, you don’t need to apply, but you can encourage your tenants to do so to turn their properties into energy efficient homes.
Improvements could include insulation, heating system upgrades, solar panels, heat pumps, etc, depending on what independent assessors deem more appropriate.
LA Flex Eligibility
It’s worth noting that LA Flex extends the eligibility criteria still further based on what local authorities deem necessary for support in their area, so check your local authority website to find out more.
Is GBIS Available For Landlords?
GBIS, formerly eco+, is available for private tenants living in your rental property, but it will be your tenant that qualifies for support, not you as the landlord.
What Is The Eligibility Criteria?
Your tenant must:
- have an annual total household income below £31,000 per year
- live in a home with an EPC rating D-G
- live in a home in council tax band A-E in Britain (A-D in England only)
What Measures Are Available Under GBIS?
The aim of the Great British Insulation Scheme is to reduce carbon emissions and energy bills for tenants and homeowners living in homes that require energy improvements. Given the name, it’s no surprise that the scheme focuses on loft, external wall, underfloor and internal wall insulation grants, amongst others.
So long as your tenant meets the criteria and you approve as the landlord, you could have insulation installed at your property to improve its EPC rating.Let us guide you today: Check If You Qualify.
Who Is Entitled To The Boiler Upgrade Scheme Grant?
With a BUS grant you could have an air source heat pump, ground source heat pump, or biomass boiler installed at your property. The grant awards £7,500 towards the cost of air source heat pumps and ground source heat pumps, and £5,000 towards the cost of biomass boilers.
In order to qualify, you, as the landlord, must:
- own the property you’re applying for (even if you rent it out to private tenants)
- be replacing old, fossil fuel powered heating systems
That’s largely it for the BUS, and it’s one of the few landlord grants for home improvements that you’ll actually be able to apply for yourself, regardless of your tenant’s circumstances.
What Grants For Electric Vehicle Chargers Are Available For Landlords?
- EV chargepoint grant
- EV infrastructure grant
What Are Electric Vehicle Chargepoint Grants?
An electric vehicle chargepoint grant for landlords supports you in installing chargepoints for electric vehicles at your commercial or residential properties.
The grant gives you £350 or 75% (whichever amount is lower) off the cost of installing an electric vehicle chargepoint socket at a commercial or residential property. If you offer landlord services across a range of properties, then each financial year you can receive:
- 200 grants for residential properties
- 100 grants for commercial properties
helping you transform your complete property portfolio.
What Are Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Grants?
An electric vehicle infrastructure grant is slightly different, in that it supports you in getting the property ready for electric vehicle chargers by helping finance the electrical requirements for multiple chargepoint sockets. This type of grant is best for landlords of an apartment block or commercial building, who will receive funding for each parking space they want to turn electric.
With these grants, landlords can receive up to £30,000 or 75% (whichever is lower) off the final price.
You can receive 30 electric vehicle infrastructure grants each year as a landlord.
What Grants For Landlords Are Available For Property Repairs?
There are grants available for landlords if your property has fallen into a state of disrepair, either because of untrustworthy tenants or because the home has been empty for a while. The problem with accessing these grants is that each local authority has different rules surrounding it and will offer differing levels of support depending on your circumstances.
If one or more of your rental properties have fallen into a state of disrepair where major works are required to make that home safe for renting again – and you can’t afford the repairs alone – then you should reach out to your local authority. Ways they can help often include:
- grants
- loans
- support in finding appropriate workers to complete the job for you
- sourcing cheaper materials
Can Landlords Get Grants To Help Their Disabled Tenants?
Yes, through the Disabled Facilities Grant (DFG), open until 31 March 2025.
What Is The Disabled Facilities Grant?
The DFG is a grant offered by local authorities to ensure that there are suitable homes available for individuals with disabilities. Here, funding is offered to support with making a property accessible for the individual – and this grant is open to landlords with disabled tenants.
What Disabilities And Property Changes Are Covered By The Grant?
You might assume that the grant only covers physical disabilities, but that couldn’t be further from the truth. Anyone with any of the following types of disability could receive funding via this grant, and we’ve included some examples of the sorts of changes your property could see as a result:
| Learning Disabilities | – Assistive tech for independent living |
| Mental Health Conditions | – Assistive tech for independent living |
| Physical Disabilities | – Widening doors – Installing ramps – Improved access for movement between indoors and outdoors |
| Autism | – Assistive tech to reduce sensory issues |
| Age-Related Mobility Issues | – Extension for downstairs bathroom/bedroom – Stair lift installation – Level access shower |
| Cognitive Conditions Such As Dementia | – Assistive tech for independent living – Bath steps – Grab rails |
| Progressive Conditions Such As Motor Neurone Disease | – Adapted heating and lighting controls for ease of use – Accessible bath or wet room – Suitable heating system |
| Terminal Illnesses | – Improved access to the garden – Improved access in the home |
What’s The Maximum Grant For An Applicant?
This differs depending on where in the UK you are:
- England: £30,000 per applicant
- Wales: £36,000 per applicant
- Northern Ireland: £25,000 per applicant
- Scotland: Not available
What’s The Eligibility Criteria For The DFG?
As a landlord your tenant must be disabled and also intending to stay in your home for the grant period (usually 5 years, but it can be shortened depending on the circumstances of their disability). The local authority will then need to ensure that the improvements to the home are necessary and appropriate to meet your tenant’s additional needs via an assessor or occupational therapist.
Grants For Landlords Summary
At Free Insulation Scheme we can help you find the perfect grant as a landlord who wants to improve the energy efficiency and comfort of their housing stock. Whilst we’ve covered a range of grants today to give you the full picture of what’s available for landlords in the UK, we specialise in insulation grants, and have years of experience helping landlords find what grants are available before introducing you to installers that can carry out the work for you for free (or at a significantly reduced cost depending on the funding you/your tenant qualify for).
Let us help you today: Get Started.
