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Hips rollout complete

14/12/2007

All residential properties put up for sale in England and Wales will be required to have a home information pack (Hip) from today.

The rollout of the controversial government scheme to one and two-bedroom properties follows the initial introduction of the initiative for larger homes this summer.

Ministers claim Hips will make the property-buying process quicker and more transparent and will also help first-time buyers by reducing the upfront costs they face when purchasing a home.

But critics claim it will make it more expensive to sell a property and lead to a reduction in the number of homes being put onto the market by speculative sellers, who it is feared will be unwilling to pay for the cost of providing a pack for prospective buyers.

Under the scheme, introduced for homes with four bedrooms or more on August 1st and extended to three-bedroom properties on September 10th, residential sellers are required to provide house buyers with a pack containing upfront information about the home they put up for sale – including details of its energy efficiency.

Ministers say the average cost of obtaining a pack is between £300 and £350 and that, excluding the information included in the necessary accompanying energy performance certificate (EPC), the cost represents charges which are already part of the buying and selling process.

Confirming the full roll-out of the scheme last month, housing minister Yvette Cooper said: "Hips and EPCs are already helping consumers to save hundreds of pounds off their fuel bills and are cutting search costs too."

But property expert and TV presenter Kirstie Allsopp last night urged the government to admit it had made a mistake in introducing Hips, suggesting the number of properties coming onto the market had partially slowed as a result of the scheme.

Speaking on BBC One's Question Time, Ms Allsopp, who is currently helping the Conservative party to conduct a review of the homebuying process, said: "The home information pack is a piece of legislation that came from a good beginning and a belief and a desire on the part of the government to make buying and selling houses easier for everyone.

"But it has completely failed to do that in any way, shape or form."

The Conservatives have pledged to scrap Hips if elected to government.