All about HIP
Home Information Pack (HIP), also referred to as the ‘Seller’s Pack’, is a set of documents conveying information about any property owned by an individual in England and Wales.
This means that, if any owner intends to sell the property, then he/she has to produce the set of HIP documents relating to the property. Sale Statements, The Energy Performance Certificate, Local authority Searches, title documents, etc., are some of the most important HIP documents.
Initially the concept of Home Information Packs surfaced to counter the routine mismanagement and delay and other hassles involved in the process of buying/selling home. The HIPs are also known to make the transactions faster and more explicit.
Home buying and selling was full of imperfections and gazumping until the introduction of Home Information Pack (aka HIP). Earlier the sellers used to have a tough time determining the exact price of the property and buyers suffered from lack of proper information. This information-gap was the main reason behind most of the property deal failures. According the reports an estimated loss of £350 million per year is entitled to unproductive home-sale attempts.
The Housing Act 2004 laid down the provision that every property-owner is obliged to produce an HIP before advertising his/her property. Thereafter, the state of affairs has undergone a commendable change resulting in a number of successful transactions. The accessible information makes it easier for a seller to quote a property.
On the other end, the uncomplicated proceeding also satisfied the buyers. The transparency offered by HIP allows no scope for any further re-negotiations and the exchange gets over in agreement with both the buyer and seller.
- Find your local Domestic Energy Assessors (aka DEAs) in our directory – Essentially the details in HIP have been bifurcated into two clearly defined portions – the required and authorized. The ‘required’ portion contains the compulsory information that includes Energy Performance Certificate, Local Authority and Drainage Searches, Sale Statement/Terms of Sale, the title documents for the property and most importantly the Home Information Pack Index.
Any person inclined to sell his/her property need to submit the documents regarding ‘required’ information. However, the documents should have been issued three months before of the date on which the property was marketed for the first time.
A person putting up his property for sale must and must submit these documents containing the ‘required’ information. Of course, one can only produce those documents that have been issued three months ahead of the date the property is marketed for the first time.
In case of a leasehold the property-owner is required to provide additional information on contact details for the property owner/management, legal details, a copy of the lease, recent service charge receipts and accounts and those associated with building insurance policy. Moreover, it must be accompanied by all applicable regulations along with the ‘required’ Home Information Pack documents.
The seller may also provide ‘authorized’ information present in documents such as the Legal Summary & Other Search Reports, Home Condition Report. Depending on the area, the seller may have to include search reports like mining search reports. The HIP may also incorporate two seller’s questionnaire forms – Home Contents Form and Home Use Form.