Compile my own HIPS

How to compile my own HIPS? 

If you're marketing a property yourself, you must have a Home Information Pack and make copies of it available to potential buyers *. However, even if you're using an estate agent, you can still put one together yourself.

When do I have to make a Pack available?
The person responsible for marketing a property (this could be you, or in most cases, the estate agent) must have commissioned a Home Information Pack by the time that the property is on the market. As soon as you have received the Energy Performance Certificate (a compulsory part of the Pack), you must produce a Pack and provide potential buyers with a copy of the Pack, or any document from it on request. In most cases, this period is 14 days after the date of the request.

Note: First Day Marketing provisions have been extended for an additional 5 months to allow for full flexibility - from 1 June until 31 December 2008, to ensure continued smooth implementation of HIPs.

What should the Pack contain?
If you produce your own, you will need to ensure that you have all of the documents listed in What's in a Home Information Pack?

What do I need to do?
You'll need to:

• Contact a solicitor or conveyancer to arrange for the searches and legal documents you need or go to the appropriate local authority or a personal search company for the searches, and to the Land Registry for evidence of title.
• Locate a Domestic Energy Assessor to do your Energy Performance Certificate 
• Find a Home Inspector if you want a Home Condition Report (optional)

* Potential buyers should usually be entitled to a copy of the Pack if they want it and are prepared to pay a reasonable fee for the copying costs, but the seller or estate agent can turn down requests without incurring a penalty where it is believed that:

• The person could not afford the property in question. The seller might, for example, want to exclude people who cannot demonstrate that they have arranged an 'in principle' mortgage
• The person making the request is not really interested in buying the property – for example, a journalist posing as a buyer to gain access to the Pack relating to a celebrity's home
• The potential buyer is not a person to whom the seller would wish to sell the property. The current position is that sellers can refuse to sell to a particular person, and do not have to give a reason. It should be emphasised, however, that this does not affect anyone's rights under legislation governing discrimination on the grounds of race, sex or disability.

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Compile My Own HIPS - compiling explained

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 Self-compiling:compulsory documents
Self-compiling: leasehold/commonhold
Self-compiling: optional items

As a seller, you can compile your own Pack as long as you get all the required documents from the appropriate sources. Some are compulsory and others are optional, although it's possible that some of the optional documents will be requested by the buyer's conveyancer later in the process - so it might save time to get them now. Guidance on how to get the different documents is provided below.

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Self-compiling: compulsory documents

1) An Index is a list of the Pack's contents. 

2) Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs)
An Energy Performance Certificate can be obtained by instructing a registered Domestic Energy Assessor (DEA). Note that all Home Inspectors are certified as Domestic Energy Assessors as well. See below for details of how to find a DEA.

3) A sale statement summarises the terms of sale. 

4) If your home is registered, evidence of title is provided by the official copies of the register and title plan, which can be obtained from the appropriate Land Registry office. A fee is payable, and such copies are acceptable as evidence in the courts. Alternatively, plain copies can be found at the Land Registry.

If your home isn't registered, you'll need to supply an official result of a search of the index map (SIM) confirming this. This can be obtained from the appropriate Land Registry office. The result should be accompanied by whatever documents you are relying on to show that you have title to the property - and therefore the right to sell it. For more information, visit the Land Registry website.

5) A  Local search can be requested from the Local Land Charges department of the Local Authority that your property is in. Alternatively, you can use a channel of the National Land Information Service (NLIS) or a personal search company. Details of these companies will be in your local business listings.

6) A drainage and water search can be requested from your water supplier. Again, you can use a channel of the National Land Information Service or a personal search company. Details of these companies can be found in your local business listings.

7) Commision a Domestic Energy Assessor (DEA) 

This has to be done by an DEA or Home inspector

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Self-compiling: leasehold/commonhold

If your property is leasehold, you need to include a copy of the lease and any proposed changes to the lease.

Leasehold documents should have been provided to you by the landlord or manager of your building. If you've lost or mislaid any of them, you should be able to get copies from the landlord or manager - although you'll probably have to pay a fee. If the property is registered, information on how to obtain an official, court-admissible copy of the lease (along with the associated fee) will be available from the Land Registry. Plain copies of the lease may also be available.

The Lease is the only required document for a HIP but sellers should include other leasehold documents whenever available and the following are authorised for inclusion in Home Information Packs:

• Any regulations or rules that apply to the property that aren't mentioned in the lease and any proposed amendments to same
• Statements or summaries of service charges covering the previous 36 months
• Where appropriate, the most recent requests for payment of service charges, ground rent, insurance against damage for the building in which the property is situated, and insurance in respect of personal injury caused by or within the building during the 12-month period before marketing began
• The name and address of the current or proposed lessor, and details of any managing agent that has been appointed or proposed by the lessor to manage the property
• A summary of any works being undertaken or proposed that will affect the property or the building in which it's situated.

If your property is commonhold, you need to include the following information:

• Official copies of the individual register and title plan relating to the common parts and the commonhold community statement referred to in the register. These can be obtained from the appropriate Land Registry office. A fee is payable, and such copies are acceptable as evidence in the courts. These copies, together with information about the fees, can be obtained from the Land Registry 
• Apart from those described in the commonhold community statement, any regulations made for the purpose of managing the commonhold and any proposed changes to them
• Most recent requests for financial contributions in respect of the property
• Details of the managing agent and any other person responsible for managing the commonhold
• Details of any proposed works to the property or the common parts.

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Self-compiling: optional items

You may also decide to include some or all of the following additional documents in your Pack. You don't have to include these documents, but it could increase the chances of a smoother sale if you do. The additional documents include:

• A Home Condition Report - an objective report on the condition of your home on which your buyer and their mortgage lender can rely. For details of how to find a Home Inspector, follow the procedure outlined in Finding a DEA above.
• Home-contents and home-use forms - forms completed by the seller on a range of matters of interest to potential buyers. Copies of these forms can be downloaded here:          Home Contents Form         Home Use Form


• Any relevant guaranties and warranties on the property.

Additional searches, such as mining, environmental and flood-risk, will often be needed by buyers in particular areas. It will save time if sellers provide these themselves where appropriate.