For houses with EPC value E or F, the rent is blocked for one year. Rental properties with an EPC D value can index half, the others fully. This was decided by the Flemish government.
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The measure is intended to support tenants during the energy crisis. Due to high inflation, they run the risk of having to cope with sharp price increases. If they live even in a poorly insulated house with a high energy bill, they are doubly affected.
Limiting indexing should prevent this. In concrete terms, this means that the approximately 107,000 tenants (out of 560,000) who live in an apartment or house with an EPC value of E or F, the most energy-intensive houses, will keep their current rent for one year. For rental properties that do not have an EPC certificate, about 20 percent of all rental properties, there is also a ban on indexing. For the nearly 92,000 tenants of an apartment or house with an EPC D value, indexing will be halved. For better and very well insulated houses, with an EPC value of A +, A, B or C, nothing changes. They can index.
Housing Minister Matthias Diependaele (N-VA) points out that there are too awards exist for landlords to make their rental housing more energy efficient. If they invest enough in isolation, they will keep their indexing.
The advantage that the tenant makes can be significant. The average rent for an apartment is 760 euros. If this is not indexed, this translates into a benefit of 912 euros for one year of rent. The terraced houses have an average rent of 875 euros. If this is only half indexed, this equates to a saving for the tenant of € 525 for one year of rent. A detached house costs an average of € 1,085 to rent. There, a stop to indexing yields the tenant 1,302 euros.
In addition, the Flemish government has also decided to increase the budget for the Flemish housing loan from 250 million to 1.3 billion euros. This loan is granted to families and singles with limited income for the purchase and / or renovation of a home. This way they can borrow one hundred percent and at a more favorable interest rate than commercial ones.
Social housing company it will then be able to borrow for the installation of solar panels on existing homes, where until now this was only possible with a new construction or a thorough renovation.
It Eviction Prevention Fund, which supports PCSWs assisting tenants with back rent, will also receive extra cash. Tenants who have taken out a loan with the Flemish government a rental deposit pay may be deferred.
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