After ten years of discussion and months of heated debate, after u-turns and talk even of rebellion, Home Information Packs are here!
The Government postponed the launch until 1st August saying that as soon as there were 2000 accredited Domestic Energy Assessors and Home Inspectors that they would include smaller houses but that to start with, only the more expensive and larger homes with four or more bedrooms would require a Pack.
Having made the Home Condition Report optional last year, the Pack is widely regarded as being impotent but the Energy Performance Certificate or EPC forms part of our commitment to Kyoto and the EU requirement for all properties to have an energy rating by 2009.
The HIP Exchange which matches homes that are to be sold with HIP providers and Energy Assessors was only launched in July but has quickly built a panel of Home Inspectors and Energy Assessors to cover the country. A deal with NRG Experts, based in Buckinghamshire and who represent the best Home Inspectors and DEA’s now takes the total number to over 1000 making The HiP Exchange the largest pool of EPC providers in the Uk.
Henry Pryor, founder of The Exchange explained “ The HiP Exchange exists to provide professional, qualified DEA’s and Home Inspectors primarily for larger individual properties. We understand that this new and somewhat controversial requirement for an energy inspection needs to be handled with care and sensitivity and that most people will want to be confident that the person in their home undertaking this work is suitably qualified.
“Our deal with NRG Experts ensures that we have total coverage nationwide and that we can provide a high quality service from the best in the profession and the Governments plan to start with larger homes means that in fact we are starting with our core market.”
Asked to comment on what the likely cost of an EPC might be Pryor said “The Government has stated that it expected a full Home Information Pack to cost in excess of £300 but that that was an average of properties both big and small. Larger properties such as those we are starting with in August will be more expensive and the EPC itself will cost around £130.
“Users of The HiP Exchange are sophisticated and are unlikely to be fixated on price alone” he continued. “Our business is based on value-for-money – a Waitrose type offering rather than a discount warehouse. After all, it is expected that the EPC should form part of the marketing of a property and it is important to make the most of something that may influence the final value of the home”.