You agree the asking price.

The photographs are booked.

You've hidden the ironing basket.

The estate agent is almost ready to put your home online.

Then comes the question:

“Have you got the EPC?”

Possibly.

Somewhere.

Maybe in an email from 2019.

An Energy Performance Certificate isn't the most exciting part of selling a house, but it's worth finding before everybody is waiting for it.

First, make sure you've found the right one

You can search the government's official energy-certificate register by address.

Check the certificate carefully.

Is the house number correct?

The postcode?

If it's a flat, is it actually your flat?

It sounds absurdly basic, but similar addresses, converted properties and old records make checking worthwhile.

Save a copy somewhere alongside the rest of your selling documents.

Now look at the date

An EPC normally lasts for 10 years.

If the existing certificate is still valid, you can generally use it when selling.

If it has expired, you'll normally need a new one before the property is marketed.

This is exactly the sort of £60-or-£100-ish job that's irritating when discovered at the last minute and considerably less irritating when sorted while you're still preparing the house.

Has the house changed since the certificate was produced?

This is where an old certificate deserves another look.

Perhaps you've added an extension.

Changed the heating.

Replaced windows.

Improved the insulation.

Made other substantial alterations.

That doesn't automatically mean every improvement requires a fresh EPC.

But if the home has changed materially since the assessment, don't simply assume a certificate produced years ago still tells the whole story.

Ask the agent or an accredited energy assessor whether a new assessment is appropriate.

Don't be frightened by the recommendations

An EPC rates a property from A to G and includes recommendations for improving its energy performance.

Some of those recommendations can look like the beginning of a rather expensive shopping list.

They aren't automatically jobs you must complete before selling.

You don't need to install everything suggested simply because you're putting the house on the market.

But read the recommendations.

A buyer may notice them too.

If the certificate highlights insulation, heating or windows, it's better to know that before somebody asks about it halfway through a viewing.

Check what appears on your property advert

The energy rating needs to appear when the property is commercially advertised.

So when your estate agent sends the draft listing, check it.

Correct rating?

Correct property?

Latest certificate?

It's a thirty-second job.

That's considerably easier than correcting the details after the advert has already been circulating.

And Peterborough has an extra wrinkle

Peterborough City Council has conservation areas including parts of the city centre, Werrington, Stanground, Orton Longueville and Orton Waterville, as well as other areas across the council boundary.

Living in a conservation area does not automatically mean your home is exempt from needing an EPC.

Listed and certain protected buildings can be more complicated where energy improvements would unacceptably alter their character or appearance.

So if you're selling an older or protected property, don't rely on:

“I was told listed buildings don't need one.”

Check the position for the actual property.

That's particularly important with the older homes Peterborough has tucked among all those much newer estates.

Finally, put it somewhere you can find it again

Once you've established that the certificate is correct and valid, save it with your other sale paperwork.

Because the buyer will ultimately need access to it too.

Selling a house already produces enough moments when somebody asks for a document you last saw six years ago.

There's no reason to make the EPC one of them.

Property Speak Translated

EPC — Energy Performance Certificate. It rates a property's energy efficiency from A to G and normally lasts for ten years.

Accredited energy assessor — A qualified person registered to inspect a property and produce an EPC.

Conservation area — An area given additional planning protection because of its special architectural or historic character. It doesn't automatically make a property exempt from EPC requirements.

Have you ever discovered your EPC was missing, expired or simply not the one you thought it was? 

Tell us in the comments.