Home Information Packs

A Guide for Sellers

What are Home Information Packs?

As of August 1st 2007, if you are selling a house with four or more bedrooms, or September 10 if you are selling one with three or more bedrooms, you must produce a Home Information Pack (HIP). After December 31st 2007, all home owners who intend to market their property for sale are obliged to compile a HIP. HIPs provide the buyer (HIPs - A Guide for Buyers) with all the information they need about their prospective new home to help them make a confident and informed decision about whether to progress with the sale. Sellers will also have to provide an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) which tells buyers how energy efficient the property is.

Why do I need one?

A HIP essentially gathers the key information required by both buyers and sellers at the beginning of the home-buying process. Sellers are required to commission a Pack so it is ready for when the property is put on the market. In most cases, if you're selling a private residential property on the open market, you require a Pack although there are some exceptions:

Property that is being sold without marketing (such as selling to a member of your family)
Non-residential properties
Seasonal and holiday accommodation
Mixed sales such as a shop that is being sold with a flat
Right to buy and similar sales
Properties to be demolished or classed as unsafe
Properties not being sold with completely vacant possession
Property being sold as part of a portfolio
New homes built under Part L of the Building Regulations 2006
Property that were already on the market by the date of compulsory HIPs* (before August 1st 2007 for homes with four bedrooms or more)

*If you sell the home before you receive the Home Information Pack, there is no longer any need to provide a Pack. However, you sellers must still supply an Energy Performance Certificate to be handed over to the buyer at exchange of contracts at the very latest.

How do I go about getting one?

There are several places where you can get your Pack produced including estate agencies, solicitors, financial advisors and specialist Pack providers or you have the option of compiling your own. In order to do this you will need to:

Contact a lawyer or conveyancer to carry out searches and obtain the legal documents on your behalf
Contact the local authority or a personal search company for the searches and land registry for evidence of title
Find a domestic energy assessor for the EPC

What documentation will I need to provide?

The Pack gives buyers information about the condition of the property and apart from the compulsory documentation listed below, sellers may also include other information such as services, boundaries and planning permissions in the area.

If you do not have some of them mandatory documents, you should explain why in the Index.

An Index of contents
An Energy Performance Certificate
A statement of sale
Evidence of title (for registered and unregistered properties)
Searches
Leasehold/commonhold documents if appropriate

Home Condition Report

This report contains the information on the property’s conditions however, these are currently voluntary.

How much will HIPs Cost?

You should expect to pay out around £400 for your HIP – this includes the energy performance certificate however if you wish to also provide the home condition report, this will cost around £600 - £700.

You will also have the choice of how to pay for the HIP: one lump sum payment, deferred interest-free payments or the cost can be included in the estate agency fees.

What happens if I don’t have one?

The seller and whoever is advertising the sale is obliged by law to have a HIP and face a fine of £200 if they do not.

What else should I know?

When commissioning a HIP, you should use a company that is a member of the HIP Code or, if you are compiling the Pack yourself, it is advisable to use a company that has signed up to the Search Code. The Property Codes Compliance Board (PCBB) can supply a list of companies that are fully compliant with the new standards of practice relating to the Codes. There is also a complaints procedure in place should you have an issue with your HIP, an Inspector or Energy Assessor. Visit: www.homeinformationpacks.gov.uk for further information on this.