Will a house rate well?

The Scorecard rating is based on the energy cost of running the fixed appliances of the home. It takes account of how the house is built (for example, insulation and double glazing) as well as how much it costs to run appliances like heaters and hot water services.

In Melbourne, the rating is usually driven by either the heating or hot water running cost.

Real Estate agentScorecard checklist

How to estimate whether or not a house will rate wellCount how many of the features below are present in the home. If there are six or more, the home would likely get a good Scorecard rating.

Feature Present?Solar panels on the roof – the more the better

North facing living rooms that get lots of sun in winter

High efficiency heaters – see table below for an indication.

Less than 200 m2 house area (excludes garages etc)

High efficiency hot water system - solar, heat pump or 6 star instant gas hot water – see table below for an indication.

House was built (or extensively renovated) since 2000

No pool or outdoor spa

Fewer than 10 halogen downlights

Not draughty – you can’t see daylight around the door frames or feel air movement around windows or from skirting boards

Total

Logos for display in marketing materialsSeveral logos are available to use on boards and in online or print marketing for properties. Each of these are available for every star rating and in black, white and blue:

Appliance Information

Good Heaters

Natural Gas Space (flued) Unit inside, attached to or inset

into wall Fan to blow heat into space Has flue or chimney to vent gas

and vapour outside

Electric Reverse Cycle Most energy efficient electric

space heater Unit mounted high on inside wall,

sometimes other types of indoor units including floor level or ceiling cassette.

Compressor unit outside uses heat pump technology

Can be mounted under eave, on roof or at ground level.

Generally efficient. Newer units (post 2011) are very efficient.

Good hot water systemsSolar – flat panel collector or evacuated tubeFlat Plate A metal collector plate on

the roof The plate is usually copper

or aluminum and is coated with special treatments to increase absorption of the solar heat energy

Evacuated Tube Look for an array of glass

tubes in a support frame, usually mounted on the roof.

All types The system’s tank will either

be on the roof (close-coupled) or placed elsewhere at ground level (split).

Gas instantaneous Efficient because it only

heats the water as it is used so there’s no tank for storage and so no standing heat losses.

Features a box on wall with gas connection plumbing and water piping at base.

Heat pump Extracts heat from the

environment (air) to heat water

Tank located outside with compressor unit alongside or sometimes integrated into the tank (on top)

Costs more to purchase that other hot water systems but uses much less energy and reduces bills.