The Home Information Pack, or HIP, is the Government’s big idea for simplifying conveyancing. Whether it will actually do so remains to be seen. At the moment, all it seems to have done is to add to the cost of the process.

Virtually all properties are now included within the legislation that requires a HIP to have been ordered before marketing can commence, and in the middle of 2008 it is expected that the HIP will have to have been actually completed (not just ordered) before estate agents can advertise a property for sale.

At Paytons, our property partner Simon Quilley has kept a close eye on developments and has been instrumental in ensuring that solicitors and independent estate agents in the local area continue to work closely together to provide the best service and value to clients. Most solicitors in the area have chosen to simply order HIPs from third party suppliers, but we have taken quite a different view. Simon comments:

“The preparation of a HIP plays to our strengths as property lawyers. We have wide experience of conveyancing searches, and our expertise as property lawyers comes in useful when we are dealing with unregistered titles, for instance. HIPs from large “factory” providers are not always terribly good – we have come across a Tesco HIP where the names of the sellers were quite different from the (sole) owner! We have forged an association with some excellent local Domestic Energy Assessors, and we can oversee the whole process quickly and efficiently. If clients would then like us to do their conveyancing work, we are well placed to do so.”

Our HIPs are priced competitively, and we can make them available for viewing on-line, on CD, by e-mail or even on good old-fashioned paper.

For more information, contact hips@paytons.co.uk