Livios Do you want to borrow money next year to build or renovate, invest in solar panels, demolish and rebuild a house…? Then you have to take some changes into account. Bouwsite Livios list what is changing and what the new rules are.
Electricity is becoming more expensive
From 2024 we will pay more for our electricity. Elia, the operator of the high-voltage grid in Belgium, will invest 6.4 billion euros in the power grid in the coming years. This is to accommodate increasing electrification (think of more heat pumps, more electric cars, etc.). But they do partly pass on that investment to the consumer through transmission costs.
The transmission costs are part of the network tariff. We use this to pay the grid operator to get the electricity into our houses and apartments. Between 2024 and 2027, transmission costs will increase by 77 percent. Count on about 40 euros extra per year, with a particularly strong increase from 2025. Also read these three things you really need to know about your energy bill.
A heat pump in your home? The prices of the different types.
End of VAT reduction on solar panels and solar boilers for young homes
If your home is less than 10 years old, you will pay back 21 percent VAT on solar panels and solar boilers from 2024. Solar boilers use the sun’s energy to produce hot water. Over the past two years you only paid 6 percent VAT to counteract the recent price increases. This way, households could still invest in sustainable energy at an affordable price. The reduced VAT rate continues to apply to homes older than 10 years.
Investing in solar panels: you should not miss this about the payback period.
Demolition and reconstruction at 6 or 21 percent VAT
Will the VAT on demolition and reconstruction remain at 6 percent? Or will we go back to 21 percent? In recent months there has been much speculation and efforts to permanently reduce VAT to 6 percent. In October, the federal government made the decision. She decided to permanently reduce the VAT on demolition and reconstruction to 6 percent. But on condition that the client is a natural person, it concerns the only and private home for at least five years and the living area does not exceed 200 m². Check all the rules regarding demolition and reconstruction here.
But what if you buy a demolition and reconstruction home through turnkey or through a building developer? Then you will pay back 21 percent VAT from 2024. The temporary measure has not been extended for this type of projects. Although there will be a transitional measure. Projects for which a permit was applied for before July 1, 2023, can still benefit from the lower VAT rule in 2024.
Demolition and reconstruction at 6 percent VAT is not for everyone: this is what the experts think.
End of portability of registration rights
Does your home date from before 2022 and do you want to sell it now? The principle of portability will then apply until December 31, 2023. This means that you partially recover the registration fees you have already paid when purchasing your new home. This portability will expire from 2024. If you buy a new home after January 1, 2024, you will pay 3 percent registration fees.
Housing bonus for second home disappears
Anyone who purchases a second home in 2024 will no longer be able to enjoy the current tax benefit from January. This concerns a tax advantage on capital repayments on a mortgage loan for second homes. This allowed you to save approximately 700 euros annually. This favorable measure therefore no longer applies to anyone who buys a second home after January 1.
Borrowing for a home? You must take this into account.
Mortgage loan costs are falling
If you want to take out a mortgage loan, there will be additional costs. Consider the deed costs at the notary, the outstanding balance insurance and the file costs that the bank charges you. Since 2017, a maximum amount of 500 euros has been set for file costs. But since then, almost all banks charge the maximum amount. And that is no longer correct, according to Minister of Economy Pierre-Yves Dermagne (PS). Especially because banks no longer provide the same service as six years ago.
From January 1, 2024, banks may therefore charge a maximum of EUR 350 in administration costs when taking out a home loan. If you go to your bank for a refinancing, the file costs will drop from 250 euros to 175 euros from January 2024.
Rental prices of homes with poor EPC may rise again
In 2022, the government decided not to index the rental prices for homes with EPC labels D, E and F and homes without EPC for a year. This measure came in the middle of the energy crisis, while rents were also rising. However, it was a temporary measure. According to Housing Minister Matthias Diependaele (N-VA), inflation and the energy market have normalized and this makes a new extension of this crisis measure unnecessary. Since October 1, 2023, landlords have been allowed to index their rents again. In Wallonia this has been the case since November 1, 2023.
This concerns a total of 275,000 rental properties, of which 75,000 with EPC label D, 100,000 with an EPC label E or F and 100,000 rental properties that do not have an EPC. The landlord may not double index the price. The lost indexation from last year may therefore not be passed on to the tenant.
The EPC label: everything you need to know.
EPC common areas mandatory for apartments
Do you live in a small apartment building? Then you are obliged to have an energy performance certificate (EPC) drawn up for the common parts. By common areas we mean, for example, elevators, stairwells, roofs… but also collective installations. Currently, only one in three apartments have an EPC in common areas. If you want to avoid a fine of up to 5,000 euros, it is important to have an EPC drawn up in the coming weeks.
By a small apartment building we mean a building that consists of at least two and a maximum of four residential units. Large and medium-sized buildings have long been required to have EPC common areas (GD). An EPC indicates how energy efficient a building is.
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This article was written by our partner Livios.be, an expert site that focuses on construction and renovation.
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2023-12-29 05:52:05
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