Costs outweigh a greener home

The average person would only invest in making their property greener if their energy bills jumped by £56 a month, according to survey.

This was the tipping point at which they would make their home more energy-efficient, according to the research from Nationwide Building Society.

Half (50%) of the more than 2,000 people surveyed consider themselves environmentally friendly. But 46% said they were worried about the cost of going green.

Claire Tracey, Nationwide Building Society’s chief strategy and sustainability officer, said: “Without encouragement and incentivisation nothing will likely change.”

Nationwide has made a £1bn loan fund available for borrowers to reduce the carbon footprint of their homes and kickstart green home improvements.

It also offers a mortgage rate of 0.75% to its existing mortgage customers for additional borrowing. At least half of the home loan must be used to fund sustainable home improvements, such as solar panels, air source heat pumps and electric car charging points.