Failure to provide a HIP, or supplying an incomplete pack carries a fine of £200 per day, per property

Despite the initial objections to Home Information Packs (HIPs), they are now a mandatory requirement that house sellers must arrange before any home in England and Wales can be put on the open market. But how do you know if the person producing your pack is suitably qualified and not going to leave you in hot water with your local Trading Standards department?

Imagine what would happen if, having already marketed your property for several months, you discover that your HIP does not contain the required information? Or to put that another way, can you really afford a heavy fine for non-compliance?

Pre 2007, the onus was very much on the buyer to instruct a surveyor to value the property on sale, and draw attention to the structures good points, as well as highlighting the bad. Nowadays, the responsibility has very much shifted towards the seller, who must ensure that they disclose all compulsory information within the HIP.

Act now by contacting us today for a FREE consultation. We work with a panel of professionally qualified and approved HIP providers who have arranged hundreds of cost-effective HIPs for contractors all over the country. But don’t just take our word for it, here’s what some of our customers are saying about the services we provide:

“I got my home pack sorted out really quickly with C&F Motgages.” Henri Fellows

“I throughly recommend C&F Mortgages as an all round useful service for contractors.” Josh Dennis

“Everything I wanted in no time at all.” Stephen Yates

Many estate agents claim to offer free HIPs but then sting you with high commission and extended tie ins

HIPs were introduced in the UK due to the high percentage of property sales that fell through before exchange of contracts in the early 2000’s.

It is believed that, over time, the amount of money wasted through failed property transactions will reduce as searches and other vital information needed by the buyer is provided at the start of the transaction via the HIP.

Contents of the Home Information Pack

If any of the documents are found to be missing from the Home Information Pack, a detailed explanation should be given within the index.

The Energy Performance Certificate (EPC)

Due to the global emphasis that is now being placed on the environment and saving the planet, the Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) is one of the most important documents within the HIP.

The seller or their agent commissions an Accredited Energy Assessor to create the certificate after they have visited the property and collected the relevant data needed. The data includes information about the property fittings (for example, insulation, heating systems and double glazing), as well as information about the date of construction of the house and it’s location.

An A to G rating will be given to the seller’s home in regards to it’s energy efficiency. This rating is designed to help home owners lower fuel bills by way of reducing carbon emissions. An ‘A’ rating indicates that a home is extremely energy efficient and will therefore incur the lowest fuel bills.

The presence of double glazing, the thickness of your loft insulation, and heating and hot water systems, all have a bearing on how your property will be rated. Less carbon emissions will be released from ‘A’ grade homes, and thus are more environmentally friendly.

For more information on Home Information Packs and Energy Performance Certificates, please feel free to get in touch via the call back form and one of our advisors will be happy to help.

Thanks for taking the time to read this page. We look forward to working with you.

Sincerely,

The C&F Mortgages Team

p.s. Just think! You’ll never have to worry about over-priced HIPs or incomplete packs that leave you liable to a heavy fine. Fill out your details below and we’ll be in touch shorty.

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