Information for property professionals

Information for solicitors, conveyancers, mortgage brokers and other property professionals

It is a fact within the property industry in the UK that reform of the fallible and long-winded property transaction service was long overdue. The introduction of Home Information Packs will reduce the number of failed transactions and speed up the process of offer and acceptance.

The introduction of the Home Information Pack itself will assist in the upgrading and conservation of housing stock through the requirements for energy efficiency and good standards of maintenance.

Henceforth, home buyers and sellers can be sure of the true condition of a property thanks to the transparency of information in the Home Information Pack.

Facts about the Home Information Pack service

Will mortgage lenders accept the Home Condition Report, or will further cost be incurred for additional documentation to be commissioned?

Discussions with the Financial Services Authority (FSA) have not revealed problems with using the Home Condition Report as part of the mortgage valuation assessment. The valuation methodology chosen by the lender will depend on the circumstances of each case.

Is it transferable between agents?

Yes.

Can a seller purchase a Home Information Pack from one organisation and then take this to another to be used as the basis of a mortgage offer?

Yes, the Home Information Pack will be "transportable". The Regulations provide that a Home Information Pack can be relied upon by the buyer, seller and lender irrespective of who paid for the report.

Who has access to the Home Information Packs in the industry and as buyers?

Access to a Home Information Pack is available to genuine prospective buyers, except where a seller has stipulated that they would not be prepared to sell to that person.

Storage – do we have to keep Home Information Pack copies and for how long?

There are no rules on this. However, the period during which the responsible person may be liable to receive a penalty charge notice does not end until six months after the property is sold or taken off the market (section 168 of the Housing Act 2006 refers). It would therefore be prudent to retain a copy of the Home Information Pack until this period has elapsed.

Where will the original Home Information Pack be stored?

The personal responsible for marketing the property must keep a Home Information Pack in his or her possession or under their control. The original documents may remain in the possession of the seller or their conveyancer.

Purchaser charges – do we charge – how do we collect funds? – recoveries process.

The Act stipulates that a reasonable charge can be made for making, and if requested, sending a paper copy of a Home Information Pack. This does not apply for providing Home Information Pack copies in electronic form.

Who will pay for copies of Home Information Packs?

A reasonable charge may be levied on a potential buyer who requests a paper copy of the Home Information Pack.

How would payment be made if more than one estate agent were involved?

That would be a matter for agreement between the respective parties.

The Estate Agent industry as a whole should be included in the compulsory redress, and not just the Home Information Pack component transactions.

The Government is committed to implementing redress activities for all estate agency activities. To pave the way, the Housing Act 2004 requires all those acting as agents for home sellers to be members of an approved redress scheme in so far as their work is connected to Home Information Packs. The Department for Trade and Industry is currently taking the Consumers, Estate Agents and Redress Bill through Parliament, which seeks to extend redress to cover all estate agents’ activities as defined by the Estate Agents Act 1979.

What sanctions will be in place for agents who market a property without a Home Information Pack, or those who make insufficient effort to obtain the data within the 14-day period?

Trading Standards Officers are responsible for enforcement and will have a number of options. These range between providing help and guidance, to the serving of a £200 penalty charge notice which can be repeated for ongoing non-compliance in providing a Home Information Pack. Where an estate agent is served with a penalty charge notice, the matter must also be referred to the Office of Fair Trading for possible action under the Estate Agents Act.

When accepting a third party Home Information Pack, will there be a validation process? Could we refuse to accept it? Will there be a quick way to confirm pack validity?

As always, the agent or other responsible person would need to satisfy themselves that the Home Information Pack met the requirements of the Act and the Regulations.

If first day marketing is allowed, clear rules must be in place for failure to commission a Home Information Pack.

As part of the Dry-run certain proposals such as allowing sellers to start marketing their homes if they have already commissioned their Home Information Pack rather than having to wait up to 14 days as currently set-out in the regulations. If the practical experience of the Dry-run requires the regulations to be amended to ensure that the scheme operates more effectively, then that will be done.

Will there be a duty to provide a Home Information Pack to all persons who wish to view a property or just the buyer that makes an `offer`?

The duty to supply a copy of the Home Information Pack applies to any requests made by a potential buyer. This applies at any time the property is on the market.

For up-to-date news on the progress of Home Information Pack implementation and its effectiveness, go to http://www.home-information.info/20070329/index.cfm