It its position GdW, whose 14 member associations include 3,000 housing companies that manage approx. 6.2 million housing units (roughly one third of the overall rental accommodation in Germany) stresses the important role the certificates have to play in raising awareness for end users but points out that for its' members, investment decisions require additional specific energy audits which take account not only of the energy efficiency of the building but also the available energy sources.

GdW also calls on the European Commission to push Member States to support investment in energy efficiency with easily accesible financial support. For more information on the GdW position contact: Ingrid Vogler: This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it

CECODHAS French Member L'Union Sociale pour L'Habitat (USH) which manages over 5 million homes for rent and sale in France also stresses their members requirement to carry out energy audits before making investment decisions while certificates are considered more as a tool to raise awareness among residents. L'USH calls for the development of the potential of the certifcate to create a European Market for energy efficiency improving products by increasing mutual recognition between countries.

The organisation also refers to the need for subsidies and the potential to extend the scope of reduced VAT rates for all energy efficiency improving measures and products. For more information on the USH position contact Vincent Caron: This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it .

While both organisations recognise the potential for the development of a common methodology to facilitate the comparison of energy requirements of buildings at European level, in view of the widely diverging climates, standards and building traditions between countries and regions, they put in doubt the viability of establishing minimum requirements for energy efficiency of buildings in Brussels.

CECODHAS will continue to collect feedback on the implementation of the current directive on the ground from its Members, which in many countries is still at a very early stage.