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If you want to sell your house after June 2007 you will have to give prospective purchasers a Home Information Pack. This must contain a whole list of documents including local searches, an Energy Performance Certificate and evidence of Title. The Government also wanted to make vendors produce Home Condition Reports details their properties� physical state. The uncertain cost of producing these, plus a shortage of inspectors qualified to write them, has forced it to reclassify HCRs as �authorised� rather than �required.
There is no argument over what a Home Information Pack will have contain. That has been set out in the legislation. What is still not clear is who will pay for it or how much it will cost.
�Who will pay for the HIP is a controversial area� says Richard Querelle of the Federation�s solicitors, Poole Alcock. �It is envisaged that sellers will have to provide HIP before a property is put on the market.
�This could act as a major disincentive for people to sell their property.
�What happens if no buyer is found? Will the seller have to pay the fee for a HIP or will it be prepared on a no-sale no-fee basis. And if this is the case, who will bear the cost?
�The Government has not yet provided answers to these questions yet.�
HIPs become compulsory on June 1st 2007. They apply to any residential property offered for sale with vacant possession either privately of through an estate agent.
As the rules state, it is the responsibility of the seller or his agent to prepare a HIP.
The mandatory part of the HIP must contain all the legal documentation relating to the property, local searches, planning permissions and any other relevant information.
There is still uncertainty in the legal profession about how long each HIP will be valid. Local searches need to be updated periodically, which means the shelf life of a HIP could be limited to between 3 - 6 months. If a property takes longer than that to sell (the market has not always been buoyant) the owner might have to commission a new HIP ... And another .. And another.
HIPS must also include an Energy Performance Certificate, rating the property from A to G depending on its level of insulation, heating system and likely impact from carbon emissions and fuel consumption.
The certificate will have to be signed by a qualified Home Inspector.
These inspectors are also the only people qualified to carry out a Home Condition Report.
There are not en ought of them trained for the work, which is why the Government belatedly decided to make HCRs an optional part of its scheme. Whether there are actually enough to carry out the Energy Performance Certificates by June 2007 remains to be seen.
�The likelihood is that many vendors will not have a Home Condition report prepared due to the cost� says Mr Querelle. �If they do, the report will be prepared in the prescribed form. It is not the same as a survey or a valuation�
The documents you will need to supply in the Home Information Pack (as applicable) are
Index (list of contents
Sale statement (summarising terms)
Evidence of title
Standard searches (local authority, drains and water)
Energy Performance Certificate
Common hold/Leasehold information, including service charges/insurance
New Homes Warrantty
New build report
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