HIP’s, EPC’s and HCR’s, they sound confusing but in fact all three are not only simple processes but will greatly benefit you, the seller, when it comes time to put your property onto the market.

A Home Information Pack (HIP) contains the following –

Title Deeds, Local Government Searches and Land Registry Searches, in other words all the legal documentation required when buying/selling a property. Your HIP will also contain an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC), giving your buyer an overview of how energy efficient your home is.

An EPC tells you about the energy and environmental performance of your home, and suggests improvements you can make to reduce your energy bills and help do your bit to improve the environment. The rating is similar to those available for domestic electrical appliances, and will display the current efficiency rating alongside the potential rating, should the recommended improvements be carried out. The certificate will also display an environmental (CO2) impact rating that measures the property’s impact on the environment in terms of Carbon Dioxide emissions.

If you are not planning on selling your home, but would like to know how to save some money on your bills then you can just have an EPC (without the HIP searches), with some adjustments to your home, for instance a new boiler, thicker insulation etc. you could start saving a considerable amount on your annual energy bills.

A voluntary Home Condition Report (HCR), has an extra charge. The reports main aim is to tell you about defects that need urgent attention or are serious, it acts as a health check for your home. It also tells you about things that need further investigation, to prevent damage to the structure of the building and are on a set list of threats to personal safety. The Home Inspector inspects the inside and outside of the main building and all permanent out buildings and the visible parts of the gas, electricity, water and drainage services. The report gives you condition ratings to the main parts of the building.

The Home Condition Report will provide you with a competitive edge and make your property stand out from the crowd. It will also ensure buyers have the confidence to commit to the property the minute an offer is put in – something they are unable to do if they still have to wait for a survey to be completed.

All of this means that the time taken for a sale to be completed could be reduced, as all of the legal searches will already be in the Pack and the Report will ensure any nasty surprises are up front, your buyer can make a decision about buying your home straight away.

N.B. An EPC or HCR is not valid unless it has been produced by a Domestic Energy Assessor (for EPC’s only) or a Home Inspector who is licensed by a government approved scheme.