In Finland, many homes are sold without the legally required energy certificate, leading to potential fines that are rarely enforced due to limited oversight.
In Finland, the sale of homes without the legally mandated energy certificates remains prevalent, despite regulations established in 2013 that require sellers and brokers to provide these certificates during showings. The fines for not having an energy certificate can reach 800 euros, yet in practice, enforcement of this rule is inconsistent and rare, with only one fine issued last year. The lack of thorough oversight and resources contributes to this issue, as highlighted by experts in housing regulation.
The responsibility for monitoring compliance with the energy certificate requirement falls on Varke, a state-supported housing construction center. According to Kimmo Huovinen, a leading expert at Varke, the evaluation of energy certificates is conducted through random sampling of public sales listings. However, with only two individuals dedicated to this oversight task, the number of homes being checked is minimal compared to the total number of residences in Finland, where an estimated 1.2 million single-family or semi-detached houses exist.
Currently, it is unclear how many homes are lacking the necessary energy certificates, but statistics from Statistics Finland indicate that of the 1.2 million homes, only about 177,000 have the required documentation. This figure brings to light the significant gap between regulation and reality, where thousands of homes may be sold or rented without adherence to the law, posing risks both for the consumers and the housing market's integrity.
