Buyer Beware – This Is Something You NEED To Look Out For When House Hunting

An apartment is currently to let in Rathmines – it's bright, fully-fitted, only ten minutes walk from Stephen's Green and so very close the Luas line.

The apartment is €1,000 a month with a double bed, or €500 per person for a couple. The landlord is also only requiring a 6 month lease.

#GaffGoals or no?

Seems like a pretty good deal right?

Well, there's a catch.

BER stands for Building Energy Rating. It calculates the amount of energy required to heat and light the building and to power the appliances among other things. 

So a low BER usually means the appliances are old and use a lot of energy, and it takes a lot to heat the place because there is little insulation. 

Despite this apartment being described as newly refurbished, the rating is still an F, basically the lowest rating you can get for a building that wasn't built decades ago. 

So as well as the monthly rent, the person renting this apartment could also have to factor in huge utility costs.

By law, any place which is being rented on the private market should have a BER rating, so keep an eye out for it. It could save you a lot of money in the long run.

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