HIP FAQ's

Home Information Packs are now compulsory for residential properties in England & Wales.

Why do we need HIP's ?

The Government felt that the conveyancing process took to long, at 8 weeks or so, to get from Offer to Exchange of Contracts.

As a result the HIP is designed so that certain key information is made available to the prospective buyer at the beginning of the transaction. ie. the Searches & the Title information.

The current wisdom is that a reduction in the timeframe a transaction takes to complete will mean that less properties will fall through as a result.

Who pays ?

The seller of the property is responsible for obtaining the HIP - at present you can commission the HIP (ie. ordering it is sufficient) at the point at which you put the property on the market.

Later in 2008 it's expected that you will need a Completed HIP prior to putting the property on the market. Matters may become a wee bit chaotic then.

Ideally if you're selling a property with a HIP you'll also be buying a property from someone with a HIP hence the costs will balance themselves out.

Unfortunately, though, if you're selling a property with a HIP but buying a property without a HIP you'll need to pay for both sets of Searches - which isn't ideal.

How long will it take to assemble a pack ?

Based on the information that's required, not least needing an EPC assessor to visit your property and the local authorities response time, the process should take approximately 10 working days.

For Leasehold properties gaining the details of the lease may push this timeframe to the limit.

Validity.

As long as the property is continuously marketed (with a break of no longer than 28 days) the whole HIP is valid for 12 months.

The Government have tweaked certain rules in the past hence if you're anxious about certain elements or requirements of the HIP please contact us and we'll try our best to point you in the right direction.