Home Information Packs (HIPs)

Forceten employ licensed and registered Home Inspectors (HI’s) and Domestic Energy Assessors (DEA’s) and consequentially have association with licensed bodies for production of all elements of Home Information Packs (HIPS). Home Information Packs have been introduced by legislation and are a mandatory requirement when preparing to sell a domestic residential property of any size and must be in place prior to marketing. The HIP is produced with the intention of bringing to a prospective purchasers attention at an early stage, relevant aspects of the property. Including, its title, structure and local environment which may affect the conclusion of a later contracted sale. There are a number of mandatory elements to the pack and a smaller number of optional elements.

A basic Home Information Pack comprises of:-
• An index page, listing the contents of the pack.
• An Energy Performance Certificate confirming the energy efficiency of a property in a scale of A to G, this is banded graphically and also indicates the general cost of fuel for a property of this style and age.
• A Property Information Questionnaire, completed by the vendor or their representative.
• Standard searches which will include the local land charges register and any other records held on Local Authority files which may be of interest to a prospective purchaser.
• The detail and provision of drainage and water services to the property.
• Evidence of title, which are documents proving that the persons selling the property are registered on the Deeds and entitled to do so. This would also include a Title Plan showing the extent of the boundaries of the property.

The above is standard for all freehold properties. In addition, if the property is leasehold or commonhold a copy of the lease detailing any rules and regulations applicable to the property, service charges, obligations of a landlord and access or restrictive covenants on use of the property would be included.

Where the property is found to be not registered with the Land Registry, there may be additional cost incurred by the vendor in production of an Epitome of Title to confirm the vendor's eligibility to sell, and this may also involve the vendor's solicitor.

The above are drawn together in a single pack. The pack can be provided in printed and bound format for showing to prospective purchasers or electronically for provision to agents and solicitors for inclusion in their marketing and conveyancing packages. The above is part of a code of practice entitled the ‘HIP Code’ to which providers of the information included in the packs must adhere. Our experience in property construction and legislation enables us to bring together all of the elements required for a basic Home Information Pack on a freehold property for a fixed sum of £299.00 or for a leasehold property £329.00.

Home Information Packs can be ordered online, payment is accepted by credit or debit card. The only involvement of the vendor is to complete a very simple application form, together with a Property Information Questionnaire, and to make themselves available for a Domestic Energy Assessor to visit their property to take measurements and complete the form to assemble the Energy Performance Certificate. This should take around half an hour in the property. The turn around time of the average Home Information pack is 3 days for the basic pack to enable marketing and a typical 10 days for local searches to complete the pack prior to contract exchange. Only extending should there be any problem gaining access to Title Deeds or lease documents. We aim to produce an Energy Performance Certificate within 48 hours of instruction. If an agent is involved in the sale, once instructed we will confirm to the agent that we are the producers of the Home Information Pack and inform them when the basic elements are in place, this will prevent any delay in marketing. We will also provide directly to the agent a copy of the Energy Performance Certificate for inclusion in their marketing brochure.

All of this is at fixed cost with no extras to pay, unless the information provided is found to be inaccurate, in which case a revised cost will be agreed prior to completion. If you would like to order a Home Information Pack on your property, please click on the link below and follow the simple instructions, answering the questions therein as accurately as possible and make payment using our secure payment method when prompted. Following this you and your agent will receive an email containing the Property Information Questionnaire. Alternatively you may download a PDF postal order form here and a PDF version of the Property Information Questionnaire here both for completion by hand and posting. Following this, at the earliest opportunity a member of our customer services staff will contact you to confirm the details you have entered and make arrangements for the Domestic Energy Assessor to call.

Simple! Now proceed to purchase your Home Information Pack