Commission FREE Private Property sales in Northampton, Domestic Energy Assessors & Home Information Pack Providers

		23rd August 2007 Recent media reports on searches — CLG response In response to media interest around acceptability to some mortgage lenders of personal and Local Authority searches in Home Information Packs (HIPs), a spokesman for Communities and Local Government said: “As HSBC has made perfectly clear, this is not an issue about HIPs. Mortgage companies have always taken different approaches to personal searches. All HSBC has done is to restate their existing policy not to accept such searches. And Barclays has made clear the story is wrong and that they have in fact amended their policy to accept personal searches. “The vast majority of the major mortgage lenders — 9 out of the top 10 — do accept personal searches. Personal searches are not new — they have already operated successfully in the market for over a decade and currently make up around 45% of the marketplace. “Solicitors therefore routinely accept these searches and in fact commissioned more than 650,000 personal searches on behalf of their clients in 2006 alone [according to the Council of Property Search Organisations]. “But sellers, HIP providers, agents and conveyancers are free to use either Local Authority searches or personal searches. The introduction of HIPs has in fact brought in stringent regulations for private search companies — compulsory insurance for private search companies, robust redress arrangements for buyers and sellers and financial protection in the event of a company going out of business. This significantly improves the protection for buyers and sellers compared to previous arrangements. There is no reason why lenders or solicitors should not have confidence in accepting personal searches.” Bernard Clarke from the Council of Mortgage Lenders said: “I think that most lenders are aleady accepting [personal searches] and that as time goes on, as companies and lenders are persuaded that these private searches are just as reliable as those from local authorities, then more lenders will move to accept them.”
		17th August 2007 CLG has today issued a press release announcing the next phase of the roll-out of Home Information Packs. This means that homes with 3 or more bedrooms marketed for sale from 10 September will require a HIP. ======================= NEXT STAGE FOR HOME INFORMATION PACKS AND ENERGY PERFORMANCE CERTIFICATES ANNOUNCED August 17, 2007 The Government has today announced that Home Information Packs (HIPs) and Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs) will be rolled out to three bedroom properties from September 10. HIPs and EPCs are being introduced on a phased basis to ensure a smooth transition in the housing market, and to begin the process of transforming the home buying and selling process in the interests of consumers and the environment at the earliest opportunity. Following the introduction of the packs for homes with four bedrooms and above on August 1, the Government has today confirmed there will be enough energy assessors, nationally and regionally, to roll out to three bedroom homes next month, having taken into account the operation of HIPs in the market. HIPs and EPCs will give house buyers energy ratings for homes for the first time, from A to G - similar to consumer friendly ratings for fridges, helping to lower fuel bills and reduce carbon emissions. The packs will also help to cut costs for consumers by increasing transparency and competition in the home buying and selling process. A further announcement on rolling out HIPs and EPCs to other properties will be made in due course. Our key criteria will be ensuring a smooth implementation and that the necessary energy assessors, both nationally and regionally, are in place. Communities Minister Baroness Andrews said: "We are now ready to start rolling out HIPs and EPCs to the next part of the market as promised, and improve a home buying and selling process which currently is not working for consumers or the environment." "HIPs and EPCs can help families to save hundreds of pounds off their fuel bills, and cut a million tonnes of carbon a year. They also have the potential to reduce the millions of pounds wasted by consumers when buying and selling a home, by increasing transparency and competition in a process that hasn't changed for a generation." Measures recommended in the EPC could save the average consumer £300 a year off their fuel bills, according to the Energy Saving Trust. Typical 'green grants' of £100 to £300 for energy saving improvements like loft insulation are available for many home owners. A new system to make it easier for home owners to access these grants from energy suppliers was launched earlier this month. Energy suppliers are providing immediate access and information about green grants and offers to home buyers when they sign up to an energy contract. A new portal on the Energy Saving Trust’s website also allows consumers to tap in their postcode to find out offers available. A snapshot of leading HIP providers shows packs are taking five days on average to produce. Many major estate agent chains are offering HIPs as part of their ordinary fees. Others are charging in the region of £300 to £350 plus VAT on an upfront or deferred basis - £200 to £250 of which is already paid for in the current system.
		3 August 2007 Since Wednesday 1 August, when HIPs went live for 4 or more bedroom homes, a number of issues have been raised through our press office and other channels. We have set out below the Department’s response to these. If there are any further issues you would like the HIPs team to clarify, please e-mail homeinfopacks@communities.gsi.gov.uk To read through the full set of FAQ’s please visit http://www.home-information.info/doc?id=98 I was marketing my 4 bed property before 1 August: Will I need a HIP if I switch estate agent or an agreed sale has fallen through? If the property is marketed continuously from before the commencement date (1 August for properties with 4 bedrooms or more),then a HIP is not required. However, a HIP is required for such properties if there is a break in marketing which results in the property being put back on the market on or after 1 August (for example, a break in marketing might occur by switching agents). If the reason there is a break in marketing is because a sale has fallen through - provided that the property is placed back on the market within 28 days - a HIP is not required. *If you wish to change agent, before you do, simply place an advert on our site and this will cover the break in marketing. Packs will cost up to £1,000 A snapshot of leading estate agents shows that most will offer a HIP for around £300 to £350 plus VAT - £200 to £250 of which is already paid for in the current system. You should market a home with three bedrooms and a study to avoid a HIP. Pretending you only have three bedrooms instead of four could risk losing £120,000 on your sale price - that doesn't sound like good advice for consumers. Personal searches will not be acceptable in HIPs HIPs require a specific set of information to be provided for searches to be valid and therefore be included in the pack. Both local authority searches and searches provided by private search companies are required to meet the same standard. Therefore there should be no reason why private searches should not be accepted. However, until 1 April 2008 transitional arrangements have been put in place to allow private search companies to continue their current practice of covering any missing data by insurance cover. This dispensation is only available in those circumstances where the local authority denies access to data.

10th September 2007

Green findings - Energy Performance Certificates and Home Information Packs

Recent media reports on searches — CLG response