The public needs greater education around the subject, according to new research from Mortgage Advice Bureau (MAB).

The firm’s study found that around one in three (33%) believe that contributing personally to the country reaching its net zero target by 2050 is important to them, and the reason they would make changes to their home.

However, the research suggested that many are unclear on measures already in place to improve the efficiency of the nation’s property, with two-thirds (66%) unaware of the incoming rules around minimum energy performance certificate (EPC) ratings for rental properties.

In addition, one in five (20%) said they would not know which changes they could make to their home in order to make it more energy efficient.

MAB said that it wanted to raise awareness of the importance of paying closer attention to energy use, and of what homeowners can do to improve their energy efficiency ratings.

A study by Leeds Building Society found that energy efficiency is now a key criteria for prospective buyers.

Ben Thompson, deputy CEO of Mortgage Advice Bureau, said that the UK’s homes are some of the oldest and least efficient in Europe, but there are ways to improve them, ranging from the costly to the more budget friendly.

He added: “It’s clear that the UK wants to become more environmentally-friendly, and there are benefits to those that do go green, with possible outcomes including reduced energy bills and a higher property value.”

With that in mind, a previous study by the broker suggested that a tenth of lenders will only offer ‘green’ mortgages in the future. And over the past two months, YourMoney.com has written extensively about green mortgages.

Back in November, we published a report that found that green mortgages were a mystery to most borrowers. Given the nature of that report, we followed that up in January with a beginner’s guide to world of green mortgages.