Home Info Packs trial starts

6 November 2006

The Government's trial of Home Information Packs - which sellers will need to supply from next summer - has got under way in six areas across England.

Pilots are taking place in Bath, Cambridge, Huddersfield, Newcastle, Northampton and Southampton. The trial is designed to test both the HIPs and the full Home Condition Reports, however, sellers won't have to pay for the packs.

The Government believes that these packs will help to speed up the buying and selling process. At the moment, a lot of the information needed by a buyer only becomes available after an offer has been accepted. This means that any problems with the property may only come to light once buyers and sellers have incurred costs - causing terms to be re-negotiated, delays in the exchange of contracts and may even result in transactions falling through.

From 1 June 2007, it will be compulsory for sellers to make a HIP available to a potential buyer. The pack will contain information that the buyer needs about the property, such as the terms of sale, title deeds, local searches, warranties and an Energy Performance Certificate.

However, critics say that the Government has watered down the content of these packs. That's after the Housing minister, Yvette Cooper, announced back in July that she wouldn't required HIPs to contain a Home Condition Report - that's a survey by any other name.