Between 30 September and 1 October 2026, new homes in England will cross three important regulatory thresholds: the second-staircase requirement for new residential buildings over 18 metres, the Building Safety Levy, and the planned introduction of a redesigned Energy Performance Certificate, or EPC.
These changes are often discussed in the context of whether property prices will rise or whether buyers should purchase now. Their immediate effects, however, are on development costs, building design, saleable floor area and the future compliance costs of rental homes. For buyers comparing UK new-build apartments, the more useful question is: which side of the regulatory dividing line does a particular development fall on?
The three thresholds at a glance
| Measure | Key date | Main scope | Transitional conditions |
|---|---|---|---|
| Building Safety Levy | 1 October 2026 | Generally new residential developments of 10 homes or more | Primarily determined by the building-control application date; applications submitted before commencement are generally outside the levy |
| Second staircase | 30 September 2026 | New residential buildings with a top storey more than 18 metres above ground level | The application must be submitted before commencement and work must be “sufficiently progressed” by 30 March 2028 |
| New EPC / rental energy standard | October 2026 is the target for the redesigned EPC; 1 October 2030 is the firm rental deadline | Homes generally / privately rented homes | The EPC launch date is not a statutory commencement date; rental rules include exemptions and a spending cap |
Threshold one: the Building Safety Levy
The Building Safety Levy is a one-off charge on new residential development in England, scheduled to take effect on 1 October 2026. It is calculated according to residential floor area, with a per-square-metre rate that varies by local authority. The “client” named in the building-control application—normally the developer—is responsible for paying the local authority. Payment must be completed before the project can receive its completion certificate.
A frequently overlooked distinction is the difference between the standard rate and the previously developed land rate. Each charging authority has two rates. Where the development site qualifies as previously developed land, commonly called brownfield land, the applicable rate is reduced by half.
| Charging authority | Standard rate | Previously developed land rate |
|---|---|---|
| Manchester | £28.44 per sq m | £14.22 per sq m |
| Salford | £30.35 per sq m | £15.18 per sq m |
| Westminster | £98.01 per sq m | £49.01 per sq m |
| County Durham | £12.70 per sq m | £6.35 per sq m |
There are 298 charging authorities, with the highest and lowest rates differing by roughly 7.7 times. Many city-centre apartment developments in Manchester and Salford occupy former factories, warehouses or car parks and may therefore qualify for the reduced rate. City-centre location alone is not sufficient evidence, however. The site’s formal status must still be confirmed with the developer.
Under the official definition, the land generally must have contained a building after 1 July 1948, and at least 75% of the site within the red-line boundary must qualify. Underground structures, agricultural and forestry buildings, mining uses and unlawful development may be excluded. Before applying the headline rate to a project, buyers should therefore establish which land category actually applies.
Exempt or excluded developments can include projects with fewer than 10 homes, purpose-built student accommodation with fewer than 30 bedspaces, and specified forms of social rent, intermediate rent, shared ownership, First Homes and supported housing. Hospitals, care homes, school accommodation, hotels and places of worship may also fall outside the ordinary residential charge.
The transition rule is comparatively straightforward. A development with a building-control application submitted before 1 October 2026 is generally outside the levy. Later changes to that same application do not automatically remove the exemption. In other words, this threshold is principally determined by the application date rather than whether physical construction has begun.
Key distinction: First establish the application date, then confirm the land classification. The first determines whether the levy applies; the second determines the relevant rate.
Threshold two: the second staircase above 18 metres
From 30 September 2026, a new residential building with a top storey more than 18 metres above ground level must provide a second staircase. The original consultation proposed a 30-metre threshold, but this was later reduced to 18 metres to align with the threshold used for higher-risk buildings.
A second staircase is not simply an additional flight of stairs. It can change the building core, corridor arrangement, apartment layouts and overall floor plan, while also reducing the area available for sale. The government impact assessment estimated additional capital expenditure of approximately £500,000 to £2.3 million for representative buildings, plus £583,500 to £2.073 million in lost saleable-floor-area value. Centre for Cities separately estimated an effect equivalent to roughly £22,500 per apartment. These are modelled estimates rather than a fixed cost for every development.
The transition arrangement contains an additional construction-progress test. To continue under the earlier rules, a development must both submit its building-control application or notice before 30 September 2026 and become “sufficiently progressed” by 30 March 2028.
For a new building, sufficient progress generally means that concrete pouring for trench, pad or raft foundations has begun, or that permanent piling has started. A developer therefore cannot preserve the former position merely by submitting an application before the deadline; the project must also reach the specified foundation stage in time.
- The Building Safety Levy is primarily determined by the application date.
- The second-staircase transition depends on both the application date and construction progress.
- An early application without the required foundation work may not preserve a single-stair design.
The official wording focuses on new high-rise residential buildings. Whether the same requirement applies in certain material-change-of-use or conversion cases still needs to be assessed against the individual project and the latest official guidance. Buildings below 18 metres may remain subject to existing fire-safety and single-stair evacuation provisions, but that does not mean the new 2026 second-staircase rule applies to them.
Key distinction: The levy may be assessed by the application date alone; the second-staircase transition cannot. Both timing and physical progress matter.
Threshold three: the redesigned EPC and the 2030 rental standard
The UK government has said that it is working towards introducing the redesigned EPC from October 2026. This is a delivery target, not a statutory commencement date. Describing the new certificate as becoming universally mandatory in October 2026 therefore overstates the current position.
The existing domestic EPC is centred mainly on energy cost. The redesigned system is expected to use four headline indicators: energy cost, fabric performance, heating system and smart readiness. The underlying assessment methodology is expected to move from SAP and RdSAP to the Home Energy Model, while the domestic EPC validity period remains 10 years.
For landlords, the more consequential date is 1 October 2030. Under the current policy direction, privately rented homes must meet the equivalent of EPC C by that date. The earlier proposal to apply the standard to new tenancies from 2028 has been dropped, leaving a single deadline that covers all tenancies.
The policy includes a general improvement-cost cap of £10,000. For properties valued below £100,000, the cap is the lower of £10,000 and 10% of the property value. The government impact assessment estimates average spending of about £5,400, while the maximum penalty is £30,000 per property for each breach.
A transitional provision also applies. An EPC rated C or above under the existing system and obtained before 1 October 2029 can continue to be treated as compliant for the certificate’s validity period. Assessing whether a rental home may require improvement before 2030 therefore involves more than its current rating: the certificate date, expiry date and assessment framework also matter.
Official statistics for the first quarter of 2026 show that 87% of new homes in England were rated A or B, including 67% at B. Among existing homes, 88% were rated C or D and only 12% achieved A or B. The statistics do not isolate apartments as a completely separate group, so they cannot support a blanket claim that every new-build apartment is more efficient than every existing apartment.
Key distinction: October 2026 remains a delivery target for the redesigned EPC. The firm date that landlords should incorporate into holding-cost assessments is 1 October 2030.
Will the three thresholds increase property prices?
All three measures may increase development or ownership costs, but a cost increase does not automatically produce a price increase. The burden may be absorbed through developer margins, land values, affordable-housing or Section 106 contributions, apartment layouts, saleable area, development phasing or final sale prices.
The Home Builders Federation has argued that some costs may be transferred upstream through renegotiated land prices, affordable-housing delivery or planning contributions, while also noting that land values can only fall so far. There is no reliable public quantitative analysis that allocates the eventual burden precisely among buyers, developers, landowners and other parties.
Manchester’s residential construction pipeline has also weakened, but available industry feedback has focused heavily on the Building Safety Regulator’s Gateway 2 approval process. No public research has established that the Building Safety Levy or second-staircase rule directly caused the decline. The measures may affect future project viability and supply timing, but the defensible conclusion is that the relationship requires observation rather than that causation has already been proven.
What matters for buyers?
Together, the three thresholds divide developments into different cost and design generations. Projects that submitted building-control applications earlier may retain the former cost and design basis. Later applications may need to incorporate the levy, a second staircase or new energy-assessment requirements.
This does not mean an older project must be cheaper or a newer project must be better. Nor does it amount to an argument that buying now is necessarily preferable to waiting. It means that two developments should not be compared solely by price, layout and marketing images without first checking whether they operate under the same regulatory and cost framework.
Common misconceptions
Misconception 1: “Manchester apartments will pay a £28.44 per sq m safety levy.”
Many city-centre apartment developments occupy previously developed land and may therefore qualify for the reduced £14.22 per sq m rate. The land classification should be confirmed before either rate is used in a cost calculation.
Misconception 2: “The redesigned EPC becomes mandatory in October 2026.”
October 2026 is a government delivery target rather than a statutory commencement date. The firm deadline is the rental compliance line on 1 October 2030.
Misconception 3: “Buildings below 18 metres also need a second staircase.”
That is incorrect. Buildings below 18 metres may be subject to existing fire-safety and single-stair evacuation provisions, but not the new 2026 second-staircase requirement for new residential buildings above the threshold.
Misconception 4: “Higher costs mean property prices must rise.”
There is no reliable public quantification of whether the cost will be absorbed through lower land values, renegotiated planning contributions, developer margins or sale prices. Manchester’s residential pipeline fell below 10,000 homes under construction for the first time in a decade in 2025, but industry feedback identified the Building Safety Regulator’s Gateway 2 process as a major bottleneck rather than naming these three measures. Any price conclusion that skips both cost allocation and the wider constraints on supply should be treated cautiously.
UK new-build October thresholds: FAQ
Q1: The development I am considering is already under construction. Will it still be affected?
Many developments already under construction submitted their building-control applications before the relevant thresholds and may therefore fall outside the levy or the new second-staircase requirement. The application date must still be verified for each project. This is particularly important for phased developments, where later phases may or may not rely on the same application.
Q2: Will the three measures push up UK property prices?
Higher costs do not automatically mean higher prices. There is no reliable public quantitative conclusion on whether the burden will fall on developers, land values or buyers, and the effect on the pace of future supply remains uncertain. What can be established is that developments on opposite sides of the thresholds have different cost foundations and should be compared separately.
Q3: If I intend to rent out the property, which date matters most?
The key date is 1 October 2030. Under the current policy direction, all tenancies must meet the equivalent of EPC C by then, without a separate earlier stage for new tenancies. The general improvement-cost cap is £10,000 and the maximum penalty is £30,000 per property for each breach. Buyers considering a rental property should establish the expected EPC position at completion.
Seven questions to ask the developer
- On what date was the building-control application or initial notice submitted?
- Was it submitted before or after 1 October 2026?
- Does the site qualify as previously developed land, and will the standard or reduced levy rate apply?
- If the building exceeds 18 metres, was the application submitted before 30 September 2026, and when is permanent piling or foundation concrete expected to begin?
- Will later phases use the same building-control application or require a separate submission?
- What EPC rating is expected at completion, and will it be assessed under the existing system or the redesigned four-indicator framework?
- Are the levy, second-staircase design and energy-compliance costs already reflected in the current price and specification?
These questions cannot make the purchase decision for a buyer. They can, however, shift the discussion from how attractive a development sounds to which of its underlying conditions can be verified.
Zagdim summary
The three changes taking place around the end of September and beginning of October 2026 are not a countdown for buyers. They are regulatory dividing lines for developers. The Building Safety Levy is primarily determined by the application date; the second-staircase transition depends on both the application date and construction progress; October 2026 remains a target for the redesigned EPC; and the firm rental deadline is 1 October 2030.
Rather than reducing the rules to a simple instruction to buy now or wait, buyers can verify the application date, land classification, building height, construction progress and expected energy standard, then assess whether the resulting costs have already been reflected in the design and price.
This article is for general information only and does not constitute investment, legal, tax, building-regulation or financial advice. Rules, rates and timetables may change. Their application to an individual development should be confirmed against current legislation, the latest government guidance, information from the developer and independent professional advice.
