“How Latvian Residents Plan to Reduce Expenses on Heating and Electricity Bills”

The record-breaking bills for heating and electricity received in the past heating season have encouraged Latvian residents to seriously consider taking radical steps to reduce expenses. Every twelfth person surveyed by the market research agency “Norstat Latvija” is determined to move to a newer, more energy-efficient home, reports “Bigbank”.

The experience gained during the winter, living in unrenovated houses and paying large utility bills, has encouraged people to look for effective solutions to the problem. Most of the respondents are not ready for drastic changes, so they plan to make improvements appropriate to the hand. 34% of respondents are determined to change their habits in electricity consumption and space heating in order to reduce expenses.

Another 17% will spend time in the summer looking for more favorable utility service offers. This includes both changing the tariff plan and switching to a new service provider if the existing one does not offer a more affordable price. As you know, consumers can freely choose their electricity supplier, and from May 1, it is also possible to change the natural gas seller. This opens up the opportunity for homeowners to get rid of disadvantageous contracts.

Another third of the respondents are open to more ambitious investments – 15% are determined to insulate their existing residence, 12% will change the heating equipment or even the type of heating, while 4% plan to install solar panels.

The most radical change – moving to a newer, more energy-efficient home – is considered by 8% of respondents. Such an opportunity appeals to younger people the most. At the age of 18 to 29, even 15% of all respondents would like to live in a younger place of residence. Most of them are residents of Riga, couples or young families with one or two children. The socio-economic profile of the respondents confirms that a new home is not just a distant dream, as the average income of potential buyers per household member is 1,000 to 1,500 euros.

It follows from the survey that 28% of respondents do not plan to make any improvements, while 5% have already managed to eliminate the biggest shortcomings.

“A few months ago, in the middle of the heating season, the survey found that 33% of the respondents’ utility bills were higher than the monthly payment of the housing loan or rent. The costs increased rapidly mainly for those living in unrenovated houses, while in an energy-efficient house, heating costs were much lower. This confirms , that it is worth investing in improving the energy efficiency of the home or in purchasing a new, more economical property for every family. Every interested party has the opportunity to find a suitable solution and make sure that in the future they have to pay less for utility services,” says Edgars Surgofts, head of the Latvian branch of “Bigbank”.