Frequently Asked Questions

How long will my Home Information Pack be valid for?

What will be in my Home Information Pack?

I own a shared ownership property do I still need a pack?

Do I need to have a Home Information Pack before I market my property

I am currently considering purchasing my property under my "Right to Buy" agreement, do I need to obtain a Home Information Pack?

How long will my Home Information Pack be valid for?
Your pack will be valid for as long as you continously market your property, the regulations put in place will allow for short periods of time when your property is no longer on the market, examples of this could be when your property is under offer or you have decided to change the estate agent marketing the property for you.

Part of the pack contents will be local searches, these are generally valid for a period of six months, currently most property purchases are completed within this time and with the Home Information Pack being designed to streamline the house buying process it is unlikely that this should cause too many problems.

What will be in my Home Information Pack?

Your pack will be made up of several documents, these have been split up into two different sections, these sections are "Required" and "Authorised" below are details of what each section will or may contain;

• An energy performance certificate (this will be the first document in the pack after the index)
• An index listing the contents of the pack
• A sale statement which will summarize the terms of the sale
• Evidence of Title
• Standard searches which will include local, water and drainage searches
• Commonhold information where appropriate
• Leasehold information where appropriate (to include a copy of the lease, plus information on service charges and insurance)
• A new homes warranty, if appropriate
• A report on a home that is not yet built, ie new build (this has been defined as a predicted energy assessment)

The "Authorised" documents include:

• Warranties and guarantees
• Other searches
• Home Condition Report*

* Home condition reports are no longer compulsory although there use is being encouraged, this will help to identify any problems and will enable the buyer to take the properties condition into account prior to making an offer.

I want to market my shared ownership property for sale do I still need a pack?

Yes, when you market your shared ownership property you will be required to have an Home Information Pack.

Do I need to have a Home Information Pack before I market my property?

From the 1st August 2007 you were required to have an Home Information Pack before marketing your property for sale, (properties with 4 bedrooms or more), this has been further extended to include properties with 3 bedrooms from September 10th 2007. The final stage of the home information pack roll out will happen on December 14th 2007 when all properties will be required to have a Home Information Pack. You will still be allowed to market your property where you are waiting for your local authority searches and where relevant leasehold information to arrive, these rules are defined within the regulations.

I am currently considering purchasing my property under my "Right to Buy" agreement, do I need to obtain a Home Information Pack?

Under current regulation it is not compulsory for you to obtain a Home Information Pack to purchase your property under a right to buy agreement, this is because the property will not be openly marketed to the general public. The Department for Communities and Local Government are currently considering whether or not to adopt similar principles to the Home Information Pack, this would help to bring reassurance to people buying their properties under their right to buy option.