Henry Pryor Says: HIP HIP hooray

Search: More on HIPs and three bedroom houses

The Government have decided to include 3 bedroom properties in the Home Information Pack farce they have created. From 10th September, anyone who starts to market a property with THREE or more bedrooms will need to order a Pack.

This means that about 60% of the market will be included with the remaining 1 and 2 bed homes to follow, I guess, in the New Year.

3000 Energy Inspectors who have trained at their own expense will be very please with this news.

They have had just 500 Energy Performance Certificates to do in August so most have not earned a penny this month.

September should see at least 50,000 EPC's required as around 120,000 properties come onto the market every month.

However, it is rumored that some estate agents are just ignoring the legislation despite the risks for being banned from practicing if they do as most just can't see who or how anyone is going to check up.

The Royal Institution of Chartered Survayors (RICS) in an interview I shared with them today on the BBC continued to moan that HIPs were a bad idea and that the roll out was flawed.

Their spokesman had the nerve to suggest that they were bad for first time buyers! The one sector that everyone grudgingly agreed would benefit are first time buyers since they are less likely to waste money on an abortive purchase if they have the benefit of a Pack.

Also, if there's one sector of the market that RICS does not represent it is first time buyers since by definition, they have no property to sell.

I suspect that whilst the RICS campaign to derail HIPs has been quite colourful they have ultimately lost the argument. I too have lost arguments in the past including both fox hunting and smoking, but having done so, I think that one needs to recognise the fact and move on.

This Government are not going to change their minds now so let's wait for an Election and see who wins.

The RICS represents just a small section of the market - a few estate agents as well as many surveyors but they also represent some Home Inspectors who trained with them and who must be wondering why they signed up to a body seemingly determined to undermine their livelihood.

So, whilst they may not do the job for which they were intended, we should get on and deal with HIPs and if you want to, add them to the list of things that we want an opposition party to correct if they get into power.

In the meantime, I'm off to exercise my dogs and have a fag!

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