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 Obtain HIP costs from our panel of solicitors |
HOME INFORMATION PACK (HIP)
Home information packs or HIPs as they are more commonly known, were introduced in England and Wales and become compulsory on 1st August 2007. Initially, only 4 bedroom houses and those with a greater number of bedrooms were affected, and then followed by a staged process to bring the sale of all properties under this system.
A HIP contains vital information about a property. It is compiled by the vendor (seller) of the property in question and provides information about the property and the surrounding area (searches) for the purchaser. The idea behind them is that more information will be available up front (rather than appearing in dribs and drabs after valuations and searches have been carried out), thus removing some of the “surprises” which can appear later in the process which ultimately delays the process or result in a collapse of the deal.
Each HIP pack must contain an index listing all documents which are included, and any which are unavailable.
Home Information Pack costs are variable from solicitor to solicitor, you can get HIP costs from our panel of independent solicitors.
Compulsory Documents:
The following documents must be included in the HIP:
- Energy Performance Certificate – This will describe how energy efficient a home is on a scale of A – G. This also describes on the same scale the impact the property has on the environment.
- Sale Statement – This is a list of basic information about the property to be sold, such as the address, the tenure (freehold or leasehold), whether the land is registered or unregistered, and whether the property will be sold with vacant possession.
- Standard Searches – This will include the Local Land Charges Register including any planning decisions or road building proposals, and water and drainage to the property.
- Evidence of Title – This will confirm who owns the property, and ensure that the person selling has the right to sell it. This should contain an office copy of the title and plan.
- Leasehold or Commonhold – The additional requirements for these properties are:
- Leasehold:
- Copy of the lease
- Any regulation not listed in the lease which are applicable to the property
- Summaries of service charges going back 36 months
- Name and address of the lessor
- Summary of works being undertaken or proposed which could affect the property
- Commonhold:
- Copies of any regulations or rules not described in the commonhold community statement and any amendments proposed to those regulations or to the commonhold community statement
- Copies of requests for payments going back 12 months under the commonhold assessment
- Name and address of any managing agent
- A list of current or proposed works which could affect the property
Optional Documents:
The Following documents could be included:
- Home Condition report – This will give an overview of the overall physical condition of the property.
- Legal Summary – This is a summary of the legal content of the HIP, but does not remove the need for a purchaser to obtain their own legal advice.
- Home use / contents form – This provides information on boundaries, services, notices, sharing with neighbours, planning permission, and other sundry information.
- Non Standard Searches – These can include:
- Coal mining
- Tin mining
- Rights of way
- Ground stability
- Actual or potential environments hazards (flooding, contaminated land, etc)
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