If you have a property that you are going to place on the market, you will need to instruct a provider to compile a Home Information Pack. Sometimes described as a sellers' pack, a HIP is a pack of basic information relating to the property that is to be provided to potential purchasers.

Coles Miller Solicitors can compile fully compliant Home Information Packs for your property. Just contact our residential conveyancing team for a quote.

Why introduce HIPs?

Government research has found that a huge amount of money is being wasted each year by home buyers who makes offers on properties, pay for surveys, searches and so on, and then discover problems which cause sales to fall through. The government believes that if the seller has to provide the necessary information and the physical and legal health of the property upfront, fewer transactions will fail.

What will the HIP contain?

If you are selling freehold property the pack is likely to contain-:

1. Official Copy of Register Entries
2. Local Authority Search
3. Drainage & Environmental Search
4. Sellers Property Information Form
5. Fixtures Fittings & Contents Form
6. Guarantees
7. Planning Permissions, Building Regulation Consents etc.
8. Energy Performance Certificate

If you are selling a leasehold property the pack is likely to contain-:

1. All the above
2. Sellers Leasehold Property Information Form
3. Lease
4. Clear ground rent & service charge receipts
5. Buildings Insurance details
6. Service charge account details
7. Memorandum of Articles & Association
8. Share Certificates
9. Replies to Managing Agents/Freeholders Enquiries

Who will prepare the HIP?

Surprisingly anyone can provide a HIP. This means that there will be a number of unregulated pack providers entering the property market. It is important however, to bear in mind that it is the quality of the HIP that is important and not simply the cost involved. HIPs will only deliver benefits for the consumer if the information is complete, accurate and easy to understand which will mean faster sale times and sales that do not fall through. Experience of knowing what information a potential buyer will require means that solicitors are really the only persons capable of making this new system work.

How much will it cost?

If you instruct Coles Miller with the conveyancing on your property we will not charge you for compiling the HIP. Instead you pay just £295 to cover the cost of the searches, title documents and Energy Performance Certificate and this is due only on completetion of the sale of your property.
* Terms and conditions apply.

Why you should choose Coles Miller...

1. Knowledge: We know exactly what questions your new buyer's solicitors will want to have answered. We can prepare the replies to any additional enquiries in advance. We have the experience of sifting through irrelevant documentation and presenting information in a clear and unambiguous way. Inaccurate or incomplete information is likely to raise more questions than it answers for a buyer rather than enhance the prospect of a sale.

2. Personal Service & Assistance: Sellers will need help in dealing with the legal requirements of the pack and will seek guidance and advice in completing the forms. We are best placed to provide you with that advice, unlike an estate agent or third party supplier with no legal knowledge.

3. Conveyancing: Unlike other pack providers we can also undertake the conveyancing process avoiding duplication of effort and delay. By involving two separate parties, one to do the pack and then a solicitor to do the conveyancing, the benefits of having a HIP is lost with an inevitable increase of costs and time. Not only do we offer online quotes and case tracking, with the introduction of HIPs you will be able to manage information relating to your property online, updating and adding information when you want.

4. Insured: Some have overlooked the fact that legal liability will attach to those who supply HIPs and the information that is contained in the pack. As a firm of solicitors regulated by the Law Society of England & Wales we have appropriate legal indemnity cover.