Flat 2, 18 Chessel Avenue, Bournemouth, BH5 1LH

Flat 2 is a one-bedroom semi-detached house in Bournemouth (BH5 1LH). It has a recorded floor area of 39 m² (around 420 sq ft), construction records dating it to 1930-1949 and council tax band A. At 39 m² this is the smallest unit on EPC record across the building (39–59 m²). The building's EPC ratings span E to C, with this unit at the bottom. On EPC score it ranks last in the building (39 versus a best of 70). The latest certificate (April 2022) shows an E (score 39), well below the UK norm with real room to improve. Earlier certificates rated it C (November 2009); the latest reading is 2 bands lower. Between certificates, window efficiency went from Average to Good; while hot-water efficiency dropped from Average to Very Poor and main heating dropped from Poor to Very Poor. The recommended improvements would lift it to C (score 73), a 2-band jump. Main heating runs on electricity.

At 39 m² it sits well below the postcode median (108 m² across 26 EPCs), making it one of the more compact homes locally. It lags the bulk of the postcode on energy efficiency (less efficient than 85% of similar EPCs). Across 1996–2022, sale prices on this property compounded at 5.7% per year. On a £-per-square-foot basis, the last sale (£417/sq ft) was about 99.7% above the typical sold price in the postcode. Sold November 2022 for £175,000. That sale was during the post-pandemic price surge, when transactions cleared materially above pre-2020 trend.