Helping Innovate Property (HIP) – Blog, Housing Market News and Articles

For this article I have decided to write about the debate surrounding the proposal of landlord/letting agent registration and licencing. It’s not a new issue as some parties have been calling for it for a number of years but it raised its head again when the Law Commission made recommendations on buy-to-let reform, tabled in Parliament in mid-August of 2008.

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Most people love a bargain and when it comes to Home Information Packs (HIPs) it really seems it is no different. However, by choosing the cheapest HIP provider are you going to lose or save your money?

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Welcome to Steve Davies, CEO of The Association of Independent Personal Search Agents (IPSA) who has joined us to answer some questions in relation to personal and local authority searches.

IPSA have recently released claims that numerous local authorities are providing non-compliant searches, we wanted to hear more about this issue and how IPSA viewed the industry as a whole.

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IPSA have today released a list of Local Authorities that they are advising members NOT to buy official searches from, to ensure Home Information Pack compliance.

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The Association of Independent Personal Search Agents (IPSA) has today completed a partial survey of its members in relation to their combined burden of bad debt. The survey has revealed the amount IPSA members have written-off since the introduction of Home Information Packs due to non-payment, liquidation, alleged fraudulent trading and improper business conduct.

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The Association of Independent Personal Search Agents (IPSA) has today completed a survey of Local Authorities it accuses of producing searches that are not HIP compliant.

Christian Lister, IPSA Chairman and Steve Davies IPSA CEO have both highlighted the problem of non-compliance and the risk to consumers to the relevant industry authorities.

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There has been a rise in the number of personal search companies which many attribute to the Home Information Pack industry though some are gaining poor reputations; is this justified and is it fair that the whole industry is tainted in the same manner?

As a Home Information Pack Provider; at the outset we sourced a reliable personal search company to provide our local searches rather than provide official local authority searches as standard, as the quality of the search is to a very high standard. This remains our policy though developments in the search industry must be concerning for those within the industry and one could question whether it is really ‘fair’.

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Mr Philip Salaman managing director of Quidos has kindly obliged to answers a few of our questions.

Q 1 NHER produced some great research in relation to non-compliance of Commercial EPCs recently. Do you have any other similar research you are undertaking at present and when could we expect to see the results?

We have conducted recent research into commercial buildings EPC compliance in the South West England area. We have very accurate statistics on the number of commercial properties on the market, and we cross referenced that data against the Landmark database. 73% did not have EPC’s.

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With the conservative’s conference now finished and the focussed rallying of political troops coming to a natural lull we now see further reflection of the speeches and recently published papers.

Grant Shapps always provides some interest though feel he often lacks solid reasoning and/or alternatives to areas he dislikes. He is undoubtedly advised on certain areas though in regard to Home Information Packs and Energy Performance Certificates he just seems to be taking a ‘party line’; stating what he hopes the nation wants to hear.

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Home Information Packs (HIPs) have undoubtedly received some bad press since their introduction which has been mainly initiated by a number of staunch anti-HIP groups. However, over time and with increased understanding and research we have seen these protesters diminish and numbers grow in support of the Home Information Pack. As people witness the benefits of the HIP these numbers will surely grow and the perceived negative start to the life of the HIP, progress and develop further into an essential and beneficial part of the property conveyancing process.

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Welcome to Mike Ockenden, Chairman of the Association of Home Information Pack Providers (AHIPP) who has kindly agreed to spread a bit of light on how he sees the past and future of all things HIP related.
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