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New rules
will govern house buying and selling in the UK from August 2007, house
buyers now have the opportunity to view details of the home sellers
property as soon as it is placed on the market.
Any property
transaction must be carried out with a valid HIP (Home Information
Pack)
in place. The information provided here serves as a guide to what
documents the buyer should receive from the home seller in order to make
an informed decision should they choose to make an offer on the property.
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The UK
Government has stated that Home Packs for a home seller is required by law
as from 1st August 2007. This website provides further information on what
is required to be produced by the house seller under the scheme.
The seller is responsible for the production of all the required documents
to sell a house upfront (previously this sort of information would have
the responsibility of the buyer, if they made an offer on a property), the
idea is to "speed up" sales by having the necessary
documentation as soon as the house goes on the market.
The seller can obtain a HIP in a number of ways;
1. The acting estate agent or property solicitor can compile a complete
pack for the client in-house, usually for a fee.
2. The homeowner can contact an independent Home Pack provider to compile
the pack (these are normally national companies found on the internet -
see links below), again this will incur a fee.
3. The homeowner may consider a DIY "do-it-yourself" option,
whereby the information for the home pack is gathered by the seller using
independent means, this may be cheaper than a normal HIP. (See also - Home
Information Packs Advice) & DIY HIP.
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Estate
Agents & HIP's
Bear in mind
that if you market your property with an estate agent they will normally
offer you a home information pack as part of their service.
Most sellers
would opt for this arrangement, but check the conditions from your selling
agent. In most cases, the information pack belongs to the estate agents
and not to you.
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If you should
choose to change your estate agent you may find that you have to commission
a new home pack. The best option is to select an independent HIP
Provider who provides the Home Information Pack, choosing this
arrangement is a better option, where the pack belongs to you the home
seller, and since it is portable you will not have to pay for a new pack.
There is a
register of qualified, accredited independent home inspectors for energy
assessment (DEAs) and (Hi's) by UK region in our
Home
Inspectors Directory. Frequently asked questions (Faqs) regarding
pack contents include; expiry dates for searches, and certificates which
comprise part of the contents for information packs. Some questions and
answers regarding home packs for homeowners are on this website. See also Site
Map. For an
understanding of the role of a DEA and energy assessments see also EPC's
and Home Inspection Reports. A Home Condition Report is an optional
document as part of the HIP. Some sellers provide this as part of the
pack, find out more about Home
Condition Reports
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There is a
register of qualified, accredited independent home inspectors for energy
assessment (DEA's) and (Hi's) by UK region in our Home
Inspector Directory. Frequently asked questions (Faqs) regarding
pack contents include; expiry dates for searches, and certificates which
comprise part of the contents for information packs. Some questions and
answers regarding home packs for homeowners are on this website. See also Site
Map.
For an
understanding of the role of a DEA and energy assessments see also EPC's
and Home Inspection Reports
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For an
understanding of "how to improve my energy rating" regarding EPCs, (useful advice before an inspector visits your property) - see also
Free Energy Saving
Tips & Advice
Further
reading for the home seller includes:
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The
following links provide can help to locate more providers of Hips.
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