Jane Aves, Head viagra Residential Conveyancing

No more HIPs but who will benefit?

It is a year since Home Information Packs (HIPS) were abolished but are we any worse off without them?  Estate Agents and the Property Lawyers have breathed a sigh of relief but what about HIP providers and Buyers and Sellers?

Removing the HIP has benefited people selling their homes as they have saved between £200 and £500.  The only component of a HIP that is still legally required is the Energy Performance Certificate (EPC).  The Sellers still have to provide this to the Estate Agent usually within 28 days of the property being put on the market. The cost of an EPC usually depends on how many bedrooms a property has. The Average cost of an EPC is £40 – £70 saving the Sellers a substantial amount. 

It has also benefited the Buyer as HIPs contained Searches and copies of the Title which had a shelf life of on average 6 months meaning Buyers had to spend again on renewing out of date Searches.

HIPS were also designed to speed up the Conveyancing process but this was unlikely to be the case as all Searches that a Buyer needs to carry out – Local Authority Searches, Drainage, Environmental and Flood (even Mining and Chancel Repair if required) can be ordered on line meaning Buyers can carry out their own searches. HIPs were no quicker than Buyers doing their own Searches online. The results of most Searches are available either instantly or within 24 hours.  Local Authority Searches take the longest time – but even then the results are usually available within 5 working days. 

Both Buyers and Sellers have benefited from the abolition of HIPs with the cost of obtaining and maintaining them removed.  The facility to obtain Searches online means the time the whole process takes is also significantly reduced. There has been an extra layer of red tape removed from the process of moving house leaving behind the EPC, a valuable addition to buying a property.