In high-income, high-cost economies such as the UK, Switzerland, and the US, where prices are higher, wages are higher, and currencies are stronger, ageing housing stock continues to pose a major sustainability and maintenance challenge. In the UK in particular, around four million homes (or 15%) failed to meet the Decent Home Standard in 2024, and around 2.3 million dwellings had a serious Category 1 Hazard. Meanwhile, around 1.4 million had damp issues. The news isn’t all negative, however. Overall, the energy efficiency of English housing stock has continued to improve. Over the past decade, for instance, the proportion of homes in the highest energy-efficiency bands A to C increased from 26% in 2014 to over half of all dwellings in 2024, while the proportion in the lowest bands of E to G decreased from 23% to 9%. Overall, we need to address the issues posed by ageing housing proactively through a multifaceted strategy.
The Challenges Posed by Ageing Dwellings
Older homes can cost tens of thousands of pounds (or more) to fix because of numerous building and sustainability issues. There is often a need to repair multiple areas, like damaged roofs, windows, plumbing, wiring, heating, and external walls. Many older homes were built using traditional construction methods that are not necessarily compatible with modern retrofit materials. For instance, applying impermeable insulation to the inside of an old stone wall can trap moisture and cause damp, mould, or structural damage because the building was originally designed to release moisture through breathable materials.
Struggling to Meet Exorbitant Expenses
Insulation costs can be a major challenge for residents, since insulating solid walls is far more laborious and costly than insulating newer cavity-wall homes. Heritage protections, meanwhile, often restrict changes to some parts of buildings (including façades, windows and rooflines). Delaying much-needed work only worsens the situation, since minor issues can develop into major structural damage, damp, or unsafe living conditions that are far costlier to remedy when they reach an advanced stage.
England as a Case Study
In England, 29% of dwellings built before 1919 were classed as ‘non-decent’ in 2023, meaning roughly three in ten failed to meet the government’s Decent Home Standards. These checks ensure properties are free from serious health and safety hazards, are in a reasonable state of repair, have reasonably modern facilities and services, and provide adequate thermal comfort through heating and insulation. Moreover, only 27% of pre-1919 homes were in energy-efficiency bands A to C in 2024, compared to much higher percentages among newer dwellings. Pre-1919 homes have the highest estimated average cost of reaching band C, at £10,728. Uninsulated walls are present in 11.9 million English homes (around 47% of the housing stock), and research shows that damp is more common in these homes than in insulated ones.
Why Assessments are Key
Assessing ageing homes’ condition is key to ensuring that limited funds are invested in changes that will make the biggest difference. Responsibility varies by tenure: landlords and housing providers assess and maintain their own properties, while local authorities review housing conditions across their areas and can intervene where hazards are identified. Additionally, professional surveyors, building inspectors, energy assessors, and specialist contractors should conduct technical inspections as needed to assess issues such as damp, electrical problems, poor energy performance, or fire safety risks. Assessments should record key data, including the construction date, structural condition, heating, plumbing, and climate risks. The assessor should rank work by urgency, health and safety, resident vulnerability, cost, energy savings, and the building’s expected future life.
Managing Repairs
The relevant landlord, housing association, local authority or managing organisation should create a long-term improvement plan based on the assessment findings. Combine repairs with energy retrofits. For instance, roofs, gutters, walls, and damp sources should be repaired before insulation is installed. Ventilation must be improved alongside airtightness measures. Works such as repairs, insulation, and scaffolding must all be coordinated to reduce disruption. Funding can be obtained by combining public grants, housing provider budgets, landlord investment, and, when necessary, private finance. Governments can help by offering grants or low-interest loans to help lower-income homeowners fund the work they need. Providers should maintain both an emergency-repair reserve and a funded long-term maintenance plan.
High-cost markets such as the UK face a major challenge in repairing ageing housing, given the large percentage of homes that fail to meet health and safety standards. Fixing this issue requires assessing individual dwellings and establishing a sound long-term plan. It also requires government intervention, particularly through grants or low-interest loans, to enable necessary work without straining owners’ finances.
