August 2008 "... lollipops, ice-cream, chocolate ... all free today!" The latest promises from back-bedroom HIP providers would make even a child-catcher blush. With their free floorplans, virtual tours, photographs and brochures, it seems that their plans to capture agents like the hapless children in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang are ambitious to say the least. Indeed, given assurances that their energy assessors have now also become property photographers, we await the results from Boots with mounting anticipation. In our opinion, never has the adage, “if it sounds too good to be true, then it probably is” been more appropriate, especially given the implications of the Property Misdescriptions Act relating to such matters. Property Information Questionnaire In a move that reflects government efforts to listen to feedback about HIPs, a new consultation paper was announced this month. There are changes proposed to the contents of HIPs to include additional information about the property itself such as access, boundaries and leasehold details if appropriate. If approved, this change will be introduced in January 2009 and will require sellers to complete the forms for inclusion in the HIP.  The Partnership will provide a solution for capturing this information and planning is already underway for the process change required. Thatched roofs recognised It has become clear over the past year that home owners with thatched roofs felt somewhat short-changed when it came to the Energy Performance Certificate (EPC). While the insulating properties of thatch are well-known, the calculation methods used in the EPC could not take this into account directly and many owners have been disappointed to see that their roofs were not detailed in the report. However, from next month, thatch will now explicitly be included, highlighting its energy efficient qualities. New Partnership branding As one of the few companies actually growing its client base significantly, we continue to invest in the business. From September, we will be refreshing our entire brand which will include changes to the website and our HIPs will sport a new, more professional look. Widely acknowledged as the leader in the premium property market, we continue to invest in our people, systems and our materials to ensure that our clients receive the most professional support in the industry. Association of HIP Providers – an apology In our last newsletter, it was stated that the Association of HIP Providers had not warned their members that EPCs could no longer be accessed through a direct link. We have been informed that AHIPP did provide details to their clients and we apologise for any distress that this reporting may have caused.   June 2008 “Thank you very much David Davis” We believe that everyone in the property sector owes the former shadow secretary a debt of gratitude. This is because, despite our best efforts, we couldn’t find a single story in Friday’s newspapers about the property market.  Given that in recent weeks, not a day has gone by without a doom-laden headline obscuring the details of stories about rising prices and confidence growing amongst surveyors, so it was refreshing to see a change in media focus. Naturally, we agree that HIPs must shoulder the blame for the current dearth of buyers, especially since it now costs less to buy property and agents such as Connells are reporting significant reductions in transaction times due to their use.   Energy Performance Certificate links broken Earlier this month, the direct links to the EPC register were broken by a system change that had been requested by the government. Although The Partnership has chosen not to join the Association of HIP Providers, it quickly became apparent that not even their members were aware of this change until it was made. The effect is that existing direct links to complete EPCs will no longer work, although we will of course provide replacement links to our clients when requested. Energy performance firm receives funding It was announced last week that Close Ventures have made “a significant investment” in Vibrant Energy, an EPC provider, to help ensure their growth. While much of the focus appeared to be on the potential growth in the commercial and residential rental market, this commitment from a respected venture capital firm gives an indication that investors are convinced about the longevity and profitability of energy reporting. Energy Performance Certificates advertising Further evidence of the commitment to the analysis of energy use has been the arrival of new advertisements for EPCs in both the national media and regional radio stations. These new advertisements feature a house running on a treadmill while it is being examined by a suitably qualified energy assessor, advising consumers that very soon, an EPC will be coming to a home near them.   The Partnership goes from strength to strength Finally, we are delighted to report that our business continues to expand with new pilots starting with some of the most respected estate agents in the country. We have been chosen primarily due to our informed and pragmatic approach, as well as the benefits of our technology integration with Reapit. With the support provided by companies such as Niche, ehouse and Christopher Rodgers, we continue to earn the respect of clients and competitors alike as one of the most professional companies on the market today. May 2008 "... it's not dead ... merely resting ... pining for the fjords". With the government's recent announcement that it plans to introduce a single set of standards for Home Information Packs, it appears that despite the efforts of supporters of the HIPCode, this first fledgling attempt at standards appears consigned to the same fate as the Norwegian Blue. In a statement, the government confirmed that they will be working with professional bodies including RICS, NAEA and The Law Society to improve the documentation contained within HIPs. This issue, that The Partnership has been campaigning for over the past three years, has clearly yet to be addressed and the government is now ready to step in to help improve standards. With the use of variable quality, manually produced personal local authority searches and incomplete title information still widespread amongst the majority of HIP providers, this new code of practice should help guide consumers to using professional suppliers and eliminate the duplication of effort that inferior quality HIPs have been generating to date. Shift in Conservative position on HIPs The twilight zone that is English Politics 2008 has revealed a change in attitude towards HIPs by the Conservative party. Grant Shapps, the shadow housing minister, has been describing the “positive spin-offs from the introduction of HIPs” and that any future government would be “mad to do away with anything that has been helpful … there is no dogma about this whole thing at all as far as I am concerned”. This monumental shift may cause consternation amongst anti-HIP campaigners who have been ticking off the days to a Conservative government. After years of campaigning against their introduction it appears that to opposition politicians, maybe HIPs are not the guaranteed vote-loser that they had originally envisaged. Newbuilds There appears to be continued confusion about HIPs for newbuilds. Although since April, all newly marketed properties irrespective of their build status require a HIP, there is still questions about the use of Predicted Energy Assessments (PEAs) and full Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs). Fundamentally, if a building is incomplete, it will need a PEA that is derived from the Standard Assessment Procedure (SAP) ratings available for all new buildings, calculations that are available from the developer. The PEA can be calculated from these figures without requiring a visit to the property. However, when the building is complete, a full EPC must still be produced, but this does not require an assessor to re-visit the property and is calculated off-site. Partnership System Usage To enable our users to enter instructions even more quickly, we have added a new postcode lookup for those that do not use the Reapit RPS system. This means that with our system, universally accepted as being the simplest on the market with single-click ordering and requiring only four pieces of information, it now takes less than 20 seconds to place an order, and we still offer the flexibility of client invoicing and unrivalled ease of access to documents and energy data. We have also added the ability for clients to tell us where there are ancillary properties, as well as online help screens for assistance where necessary. April 2008 "... and in the wing-mirror she sees her husband's severed head being banged on the car roof by a crazed axeman". We are pleased to learn of a new urban myth that is challenging this rather tired classic.  Although trade magazines continue to print articles on the market-killing properties of HIPs, the "Exchange-Ready HIP" now seems flavour of the month. Some observers are suggesting that by including the Home Condition Report and the Home Use and Contents forms, this will make them "Exchange Ready". While we welcome their optimism, we are concerned that expectations are being unfairly raised by such promises. Until HIPs include a contract which is agreeable to any purchaser's conveyancer and has all the answers to all the questions about the property that the aforementioned conveyancer could ever ask, the concept of the "Exchange-Ready HIP" remains in the twilight world of urban mythology. All properties need HIPs From the beginning of April, all qualifying properties that are brought to market now need a HIP, including newbuilds. This is because Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs) can now be produced for all types of properties, and hence the exceptions that used to exist for properties built to the latest building regulations have been eliminated.  The "Drop-Dead Date" that required properties already on the market before HIPs were introduced, to have a HIP, has still not been announced. With the first year of HIPs nearly upon us, there is still no confirmation whether such a measure will ever be introduced. June 1st Position To clarify the position from June 1st 2008 , this merely marks the end of the temporary measures that were introduced last year. From that date, it will be necessary to have the following documents available for prospective buyers before a property can be marketed; -     Index -     Sale statement -     Evidence of title (or a copy of the SIM search showing registration status) -     Energy Performance Certificate As before, the seller still has 28 days to deliver the searches and the leasehold documentation, but the property may be marketed without these, although the HIP provider must demonstrate continuing efforts to obtain such documents. EPCs for rental properties Although not due until later this year, discussions are starting about the requirement for EPCs for rental properties. It appears that the impact of the introduction of EPCs on the rental market will be nowhere near as onerous as many had feared, with a single EPC required only at the first change of tenancy after the start date of October 1st 2008. As EPCs last for ten years, and are NOT required at future changes of tenant, their introduction will be less costly than some had thought. March 2008 Judging by the number of new instructions that we have been receiving over the past month, it seems that media rumours of the complete collapse of the housing market are somewhat over-rated. Naturally, the amount of negative media coverage about the state of the property market has led some buyers to be a little cautious, but the over-riding message is that the market is alive and well. It seems therefore that despite the introduction of HIPs, the property market has not ground to a complete standstill. Government validates The Partnership’s concerns In the most recent release of Progress, http://www.home-information.info/20080314 the government’s bulletin on HIPs, it has confirmed the concerns that we reported last month about some HIP providers not following the legislation accurately, and exposing their clients and estate agents to the risk of penalties for non-compliance. The government has also acknowledged the practice of some providers that deliberately do not proceed with the HIP once they have been ordered and appear not to have the full understanding of what is meant by the term, “official copies of title documents”.   MDA buys Richards Gray As anticipated, and with the rapid growth in the number of HIP providers, the consolidation amongst them has already started. MDA, one of the larger HIP suppliers, announced at the start of March that it was acquiring Richards Gray, a smaller competitor. Although the acquisition is to be approved by the Office of Fair Trading, this transaction illustrates that companies are seeking to increase market share as quickly as possible and the most effective method is through appears to be through supplier, rather than client, acquisition. Enhancements to HIP ordering and tracking Following feedback from our clients, we are making some significant improvements to our HIP ordering and tracking system. While our system is recognised as being the simplest on the market, with single-click ordering from within Reapit, we’re adding more facilities to make ordering and tracking even easier.  After Easter, the upgrade will be complete, with new facilities including; - Postcode address lookup - Simplified HIP type ordering (already complete) - Improved tracking including HIP search - HIP instruction communication (already complete)   If you would like to know more about these features, please contact us.   February 2008 “Love you long time … fifteen dollars.”  Not since Kubrick’s prostitute in Full Metal Jacket made her generous offer have we seen such outrageously low prices for professional services until the recent increase in cut price HIPs. The proliferation of poor quality websites offering cheap HIPs seems to grow daily. However, as any property professional knows, relying on very low prices results in compromises to the level of service that can be provided, and our first story highlights that factory-style prices are leading to factory-style service. Sadly, with some companies flouting the law through the use of personal drainage searches, invalid copies of title documents and incomplete personal local authority searches, it is the consumer who was hoping that HIPs will speed up their sale, will be the loser. Invalid HIPs Grow Last week, the government published a warning that it was aware that a number of HIP providers were not using valid title documentation. It appears that a combination of cost cutting and an inability to combine the title documents into a single file has lead to some providers using “Register Views” rather than official copies of the register. This, when combined with the use of personal searches that do not include critical information such as environmental health reports is resulting in some consumers paying for HIPs that are not legally compliant. Leasehold HIPs Many people are still unaware that from last December, complete leasehold information in a HIP was made optional by a change in the law. This means that leasehold HIPs only need to contain just a copy of the lease which significantly reduces the amount of work required to produce HIPs for such properties. This is just a temporary measure and after June 1st much more useful information such as planned works, management accounts and service charge documents will be required. Price unification Recent changes in the market has meant that we are now able to offer a much simpler pricing mechanism for our HIPs. Our Compliant HIPs are now a fixed price of only £349+VAT, which covers unlimited number of titles, unregistered titles, two printed copies with additional copies available for no additional cost. The price of our unique fixed-price authorised HIPs, with full authorised searches and complete title documentation has been significantly reduced to only £495+VAT outside London, and £560+VAT for all London boroughs, making them considerably more attractive for all our clients. January 2008 Our widely-reported warnings last summer about the problems that would be caused by the use of low-cost HIP content are coming true. In the last few days, we have had incidents whereby low-cost content has discouraged a buyer and is likely to cost a seller more to compensate for inadequate documentation. Where buyers and solicitors are looking at HIPs containing personal searches and incomplete title documentation there is a genuine risk that this may discourage some from proceeding with a particular property.  On a positive note, we have received intriguing feedback from search providers who are receiving fewer requests for non-HIP based searches such as environmental, indicating that some solicitors are not commissioning their own searches, but relying on HIP content, which is in direct contradiction to some perceptions. Further details of these cases will be available later this week.  Newbuild Confusion There is still confusion over whether newly-built properties require a HIP. Contrary to popular belief, all new-builds needed a HIP until May 2007 when a piece of enabling legislation stated that if a property complied with Building Regulations 2006 or later, a HIP was not required. Although it is hoped that this anomaly will be resolved by April, it will require software developers to fix the problem and this date is by no means guaranteed. Until that time, it is necessary to know under which regulations a property complies, as many will indeed be exempt. Sellers check of forms From the earliest introduction of HIPs, it was intended that the seller would check the contents of the sales statement and the index and sign them accordingly. Due to concerns about identify fraud, this was changed to just a tick instead. There were questions about the usefulness of such an anonymous mark and this requirement has now been quietly dropped. That said, the responsible person, either the seller or estate agent, is still responsible for ensuring that the sale statement and index are correct – they just don’t need to tick the box. Energy efficiency leads to higher heating bills We were intrigued to receive an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) which resulted in higher heating bills if all the energy saving methods were introduced. It appears that low-energy light-bulbs generate less heat than the traditional type, so to maintain the same temperature in a property, the heating will need to be increased, resulting in a higher bill for that utility, albeit offset by a reduced electricity requirement for the lighting the bulbs. December 2007 With the majority of new property instructions now requiring a Home Information Pack, the saga that is the introduction of HIPs appears to have finally reached the end of the first chapter. Almost a year late from the original introduction date with some of the earlier requirements diluted, critics argue the scheme has been seriously undermined. Indeed, with matters such as obtaining EPCs for newly built properties and the ongoing confusion of the “drop dead date” this project has someway to run, although it was always clear there would be changes along the way. That said, HIPs have achieved the goals of improving awareness of the issues in house buying and selling and consumers are starting to reap the benefits of reduced search costs, faster turnaround times and increased commitment levels from sellers. With HIPs increasingly used in the conveyancing process, the ongoing debate about the use of personal local authority searches will no doubt continue to drive down prices and improve service levels. 1st January 2008 Clarification With the recent changes concerning the reduced amount of leasehold information required and continuation of first day marketing, there is still some confusion about the current position.  From 1st January 2008 there will be NO change from the current position; i.e. properties can be marketed once a HIP has been commissioned and only the lease is required for leasehold properties. Properties already on the market before the introduction of HIPs and newbuilds complying to the latest building regulations standards will still NOT need a HIP. Market Consolidation There are early signs that the highly fragmented HIP service provision market is starting to consolidate, with a number of firms facing up to the realities of reduced margins and the increased support overheads required to deliver HIPs and Energy Performance Certificates. One company that had been very prominent was Habitus, who have recently announced that they have put their energy assessment business into administration.  Media Coverage We were pleased to be published in Paralegal Magazine, the RICS SafeAs newsletter, as well as being involved with the first podcast for the Partnership, details of which can be found here.   http://www.energy-performance-certificates.org/dea/podcasts/thepartnership-12-12-07   November 2007 The promise of an early Christmas present for domestic energy assessors of HIPs for 1-2 bedroom properties appears not to be forthcoming.  While the introduction may bring welcome work for some of the 10,000 trained assessors, many of these properties will be leasehold, which are proving challenging to deliver HIPs quickly. Indeed, the tough realities of rapid HIP production are starting to make some of the promises of a “5 Day HIP” ring a little hollow, with one major company taking 10 weeks to finish the work.  With most HIP providers apart from ourselves lobbying for “full market” introduction, for some it could indeed be a case of turkeys voting for the aforementioned festival. Personal searches issues increasing Following the news last month of local authorities reducing their authorised search pricing, some are now charging fees of up to £60 to provide information on building control notices and environmental health. With additional appointments required to obtain this information, this will only add to the increasing delays in appointment times of up to 3 weeks currently being witnessed.  Given that this performance is expected to deteriorate further with higher volumes, even at this very early stage, personal searches are already starting to be less attractive than the authorised alternative in terms of turnaround times and of course, unqualified mortgage lender acceptability. January 1st 2008 – Myths and Realities There appears to be a certain amount of confusion about the changes due in the new year. Some believe that all properties will require a HIP and a property cannot be marketed without all the documentation in place. As has already been seen, there remains no news on 1-2 bedroom properties and there is no requirement for the complete HIP to be available before marketing. From January 1st 2008, a HIP will need to be in place but if the searches and leasehold documentation are not available, the property may be marketed anyway. HIP providers must continue to try and obtain outstanding information, but a property may be marketed with just an EPC, title information, index and sale statement being available. HIP Knowledge – A resounding success Since launching our new HIP Knowledge (http://www.thepartnershiplimited.com/html/faq01.html) a week ago, we have received over 6000 enquiries and the feedback has been extremely positive. The knowledgebase goes beyond the often out-dated and trivial “what goes into a HIP” type of “Frequently Asked Questions” and provides an up-to-date and useful resource for agents and solicitors looking for answers on more indepth topics. If you have any questions that you do not see on the site, please email us on info@thepartnershiplimited.com and we will add it to the lists. October 2007 If you believe the advertisements, if you pay more than £299 for a HIP then you’re clearly wasting money. However, given recent examples of providers illegally including mortgage documents in a HIP, taking three weeks to organise an energy inspection and carrying out searches on the wrong property, perhaps these cheap products might not be so cost-effective after all. These low prices mean that assessors are being paid only £65 to carry out energy inspections, a job that can take several hours. In one case, an assessor willing to do the work for this money had to travel 130 miles around the M25 to get to the property. Maybe he took advantage of the queues on the motorway to file the report from his car, because it produced an energy efficiency rating of 1, with no scope to improve this figure, which is somewhat unusual to say the least.  Personal search usage and performance As reported last month, our concerns about the costs to consumers through the use of personal searches are being borne out. We currently have two cases that require a quick exchange. One seller paid for an authorised local authority search, the other wanted to save money with a personal search. As the first client had not instructed their solicitor when marketing the property, the time taken to get the searches would have meant the deal wouldn’t have gone through, but the HIP has put them in a position where the sale can be completed in time. However, in the second case, the use of a personal search may now stop the transaction because of concerns about whether the mortgage lender will accept it.  We are already seeing personal search appointment times start to stretch. In a recent case, much to the disappointment of the estate agent, the local authority could not make an appointment with a personal search agent for eight working days, introducing significant delays into the instruction. With the proportion of personal searches increasing, such delays and worse are expected to become commonplace. Trading standards activity Trading standards officers are actively carrying out inspections of estate agents to ensure that they are complying with the Home Information Pack regulations. We are aware of instances in Hampshire where officers have turned up unannounced at agents and asked for an explanation of how they are ordering HIPs and the processes they use to obtain these. They have also sent out questionnaires to all agents asking for acknowledgement of their processes and procedures. HIPs for new builds There is some confusion over the requirements for a HIP for newly built homes. This is because under the original legislation, a HIP was required for all properties that were marketed for sale, including newly built properties, whether constructed or not. Currently, if a new property is being marketed that conforms to the older Building Regulations 2006 regime then it will NOT need a HIP. Therefore, to determine whether a new property needs a HIP, it will be necessary to check which building regulations it conforms to. Media Coverage We were pleased that the Daily Telegraph picked up on our concerns about the service offered by a major water company in their production of drainage searches, with some outstanding for over 30 days. The company involved should take heed of Thames Water, who are consistently producing high quality reports sometimes within a matter of hours. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/10/13/nhip113.xml   September 2007 Six weeks into the introduction of Home Information Packs (HIPs), with over 70% of the market now requiring a HIP and we are delighted to see the sun continues to rise in the east and the world hasn’t ended. Original concerns that HIPs would deter people from moving house is difficult to validate although it has been reported that instruction rates in August for four bedroom properties were reduced, compared to earlier, albeit traditionally busier, months. To date we have found only one speculative seller that was put off selling by the price of a HIP - a tiny minority of the hundreds of instructions we have taken over the past few weeks. HIP delivery times As expected, there have been some missed expectations with the delivery times of HIPs. Most providers had said they would be able to complete a HIP within five days, but this appears to have been rather optimistic. Despite one of the largest HIP providers expressing concern that the delays are being causd by their use of personal search agents, there are other aspects that affect delivery performance. In particular, we had warned about the performance of some of the water companies and as is shown below, these warnings have proved to be accurate. Drainage search return times With only official drainage searches from the water companies allowed in a HIP, the delays that are currently being experienced in their return are starting to be time consuming. Searches are taking over four weeks with one company and we have yet to see evidence that the backlog is easing. We have already seen one HIP provider use a personal drainage search instead, which we assume to be an attempt to overcome these delays. Although currently the time pressure on search returns is not critical, performance will need to improve if realistic timescales are to be achieved with more properties coming onto the market. Strutt and Parker / Lane Fox Following their recent merger, two of our clients, Lane Fox and Strutt and Parker have today released their unified branding with all but two Lane Fox offices now under the new Strutt and Parker image. We wish them all the best for the future, and look forward to continue to support them in the delivery of HIPs. The feedback on the ReapIT integration for HIP ordering has been extremely positive with negotiators requiring just a single click to confirm an order with no data re-keying required. http://www.struttandparker.co.uk HIPcode This month, the Partnership became the latest signatory to the HIPcode, the de facto standard code of practice for HIP providers. The HIPcode dictates that signatories must have at least £2m professional indemnity insurance cover and that a customer redress scheme must be in place. Naturally, The Partnership fully supports the imposition of standards and regulations and is delighted to be working more closely with this standard as supported by the Association of HIP Providers to ensure professional standards in the industry are maintained. http://www.thepartnershiplimited.com Media Coverage Last month, our concerns about the use of personal searches in HIPs created significant awareness in major newspapers and media. We were pleased to receive coverage on Channel 4 news with The Times, Daily Telegraph, Daily Mail and Evening Standard all reporting on this issue. Although some have claimed it was a “storm in a teacup” we have already heard anecdotal reports of solicitors rejecting HIPs with personal searches and hope to bring more details of this story next month. Click on our media link for details of all these stories http://www.thepartnershiplimited.com/html/media.html     August 2007 With almost indecent haste, the announcement of HIPs for three bedroom properties arrived unseasonably early last Friday. With many observers expecting the four bedroom rule to be with us for the foreseeable future, the news that from September 10th, HIPs will be needed on half of all properties being marketed came somewhat as a surprise.  Although we have found that HIPs seem to be going smoothly albeit with a few minor teething problems, we await with interest this rapid increase in volumes and the potential impact it will have on the service that providers will be able to offer. Local Authority Personal Searches We have always highlighted our concerns about the delivery times and acceptability of personal local authority searches within HIPs. Recent feedback from one agent revealed that our concerns about delivery times seem well-founded. A HIP provider had promised the agent a turnaround of 5 working days to produce a HIP, but the searches have delayed this by three weeks. We remain convinced that Authorised local authority searches are the most effective solution and await the statistics from buyer’s solicitors that are presented with HIPs on how many will accept personal searches. The press release on this topic is available here; EPC Charts One of the more interesting challenges set for agents and providers was the inclusion of EPC charts on property particulars. The interim regulations that are in place until the end of the year allow properties to be marketed when a HIP has been commissioned which has lead to confusion about whether the EPC charts still need to be included. To clarify the position - the rule is that when an EPC is available, the corresponding chart MUST be included on particulars. If it can be shown that despite an agent's best efforts, it has not been possible to produce an EPC by the time the particulars are printed, the charts do not have to be included. LawPack Self-Help Kit We are delighted to announce that the LawPack self-help kit for HIPs started shipping last Monday. Copies can be ordered directly from our website; Reapit integration Estate agents using Reapit can take advantage of the direct link now available between RPS and our HIP ordering system. Users can order a HIP with just several mouse clicks, with all the necessary information passed directly to our system. More details can be found here; Media Coverage Our concerns about the acceptability of personal searches in HIPs were highlighted with stories in the Daily Express, The Observer and The Negotiator, and we were delighted to have an article on the current position with HIPs published in The New Law Journal.     July 2007 In the 70’s classic film, “Assault on Precinct 13”, just before the besieged police station suffers almost complete destruction, the captain announces “it’s quiet out there – too quiet”. Whilst we’re cautious about drawing parallels between the disastrous consequences played out in Hollywood fiction and the introduction of Home Information Packs, the past month has seen remarkably little interest in the subject of HIPs from either the industry or the media. Whereas in the past, if the subject of house prices or “green issues“ were raised, they would be followed by a comment about “the controversial sellers (sic) packs”. However, with two weeks to go before their planned introduction, we are starting to receive a few enquiries from agents and solicitors, and it is clear that this softer introduction has benefited all those involved in their delivery. HIP “Drop Dead” date In the original HIP regulations, the concept of a “drop-dead” date was firmly established. This was the date after which, if a property had been on the market before June 1st, a HIP would be required. However, with the revised regulations, until the end of this year there is no such date, and therefore no obligation on sellers with properties already on the market before August 1st to produce a HIP.  It should be noted that these interim measures expire on 1st January 2008. Assessor number update The number of energy assessors that are being accredited is climbing steadily. The rapid initial growth suggested that 2000 could be accredited by 1st August, which would mean that 3 bedroom properties would require a HIP (assuming appropriate geographic coverage) as early as mid-September. The government has announced that at the 11th July there are over 1600 accredited and ready for work, with the numbers expected to grow rapidly after 1st August. We have implemented a counter on our home page (www.thepartnershiplimited.com) giving the current number accredited. Search pricing It is reported that over 40 local authorities have revised their pricing schemes for their searches, with more expected to follow suit later this year. Some of the savings have been significant, with price reductions of over 50% making them extremely competitive compared to personal search pricing. However, this saving has been offset slightly with the news of planned price increases for drainage and water searches from the water companies. New contact details Recognising the increasing concerns about the costs of telephone calls to national non-geographic numbers, we have changed our telephone number to a local rate (0845) number – 0845 200 8346. These now only cost 2.5p per minute, which is a third of our original number, so please update your details. Please note that our office address has also change Media coverage Our focus on raising awareness of the number of accredited inspectors provided us with good coverage in The Negotiator, Estate Agency News and 2020Law – the new name for the 124Law magazine. Copies of all these articles can be found on our media page on our website     June 2007 Three weeks after the introduction of HIPs and progress has been encouraging. Energy Performance Certificates are being delivered within a week and completed HIPs within about 14 days.  The reaction from both buyers and sellers to HIPs has been cautiously positive and instruction levels, whilst down slightly, have not experienced a major decline. Naturally, the delay to HIPs forced us to abandon this first paragraph, but we believe this would not have been far from the truth had they gone ahead as planned. The recent changes have resulted in the remotest rumours now becoming apparent facts – like seeing distant wisps of smoke and believing it to be a forest fire. Although recent meetings with the DCLG have demonstrated a clear commitment to the phased introduction of HIPs from August 1st, there is understandable antipathy amongst many in the property industry. However, we remain committed to HIPs and our conviction to their effective use is unchanged. New Regulations Controversy The publication of the new HIP regulations has given rise to a number of news stories claiming they provide a new loophole for people to avoid HIPs. These stories are based on the fact that the new regulations allow a property to be marketed once a HIP has been commissioned rather than being made available. However, the original regulations also allowed a property to be marketed without a HIP, but introduced a rather artificial delay of 14 days which had to be endured. The new regulations have merely resolved this anomaly and do not change the need for a HIP to be ordered before a property can be marketed. More details about the changes can be obtained from our website; Current Assessor Numbers The number of the accredited (rather than qualified) energy assessors continues to grow steadily. As of June 11th, there were 1050 assessors accredited and ready to start work. Given that on May 22nd there were 520, if the same rate (approximately 37 per working day) is continued, this will mean that by August 1st an additional 1300 assessors will be accredited. This will take the total to over 2350 which meets the trigger point of 2000 set by the government to introduce HIPs for three bedroom and larger properties. HIP Subsidies The government has extended their subsidies to encourage the voluntary use of Energy Performance Certificates before August. Companies that are participating in the area trials (the Partnership is one of them) are entitled to apply for a £100 subsidy for each EPC, and the government will provide these for the first 5000 successful applications.  Media Coverage We were pleased to have an article included in The New Law Journal, discussing the demise or otherwise of HIPs.  Our continued coverage and promotion of the increasing number of accredited energy inspectors has been attracting attention with comments in Mortgage Strategy and The Negotiator magazine.     May 2007 As we publish this, the last newsletter before the planned introduction of HIPs, we have seen a significant increase in the level of media interest and activity on the topic. With the recent defeat of the vote in Parliament challenging the HIPs regulations, the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) has made an application for a judicial review of the way in which the regulations governing the use of HIPs were introduced. While neither this potential challenge nor the Lords debate due on Tuesday 22nd May appear to present a threat to the introduction of HIPs in June, we will of course continue to monitor the progress of these matters closely. Local authority search improvements A major concern about HIPs has been the cost and timing involved in delivering local authority searches. With many local authorities taking weeks to return searches and fees ranging up to £300, the personal search market had grown to provide a competitive offering. However, local authorities have recently started to respond to the challenge that having to provide access to an increased number of personal search agents will present. Wakefield Council has already reduced their fees by 70% and Birmingham City Council is proposing a cut of nearly 50%, making their searches much more attractive from a cost perspective. Canterbury City Council has reduced their delivery time from an average of 40 days down to about 2 days, showing that HIPs are already starting to have a positive impact in reducing the costs involved in moving house. Our website has more information and other news; Confusion over HIP Content There has been some confusion in recent weeks over the content of HIPs with some providers claiming that the Home Contents and Home Use forms were no longer authorised documents and therefore could not be included in a HIP. However, this is not the case, and the new regulations have actually extended the documents that can be included. Information such as proximity of local services, contact details of inspectors who have carried out work and the suitability or otherwise for disabled use may all now be included in a HIP. Government marketing initiatives As part of the increased marketing and promotion of HIPs by the government, a new website has been launched giving details about the programme for both consumers and industry. The website represents a significant improvement over the original design and includes more information such as case studies and the Progress newsletter which is now available far more frequently than previously. http://www.homeinformationpacks.gov.uk/home.aspx   Lawpack and Rightmove announcements Finally, as the demand for training and information about HIPs increases amongst agents and consumers, two products have been launched based on material produced by The Partnership. Lawpack (www.lawpack.co.uk) have announced the availability of the first DIY kit for home owners who want to produce their own HIPs and Rightmove have made an online training course available for their clients, both of which are based on our content.       April 2007 With some providers suggesting that paying more than £295 for a HIP is an extravagance, the promised consolidation of the HIP market may come sooner than expected. It seems that some have arrived at this price by assuming that an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) will cost about £70. While this may be a realistic figure in the future, currently we are hearing of firms struggling to attract inspectors at this price. When working with such slim margins, this leaves little room to accommodate such price changes. Other HIP providers are suggesting a retail price of about £500 for a personal-search based offering. We believe that this is a sustainable figure and expect to see those companies in the market over the coming years. Hamptons offer HIPs for free Hamptons are the first major estate agency to announce a strategy of offering their clients HIPs for free as part of the instruction. As previously reported, only ASDA had promised such a service, and this represents an important initiative for a mainstream agent. Hamptons state that if the seller withdraws their property from sale within a year, they may be liable to repay the cost of the HIP, which they also estimate to be about £500. Our website has more information Energy Performance Certificates for Solicitors Over the past few months, we have received a significant number of enquiries from solicitors looking for assistance in the provision of EPCs.  In response to this demand, we are delighted to announce that later this week we will be launching our EPCs for Solicitors service. This will enable solicitors to produce complete HIPs for their clients without having to organise the energy inspection themselves. Please visit our website to register your interest for this offering; Marketing Campaign Update Although many people appear to have missed the start of the government HIP campaign, we can confirm that all the major newspapers are now carrying advertisements for HIPs.  Focusing on the EPC, with a row of multi-coloured houses, the government has met its obligations and awareness is growing of HIPs amongst consumers. This is also highlighted by an increase in the number of advertisments from estate agents encouraging sellers to instruct them before June, thereby potentially saving themselves money but also serving to promote HIPs to the market. First inspection partnership announced Later this week we will be announcing that our first partner for the provision of EPCs and HCRs is NRGExperts (www.nrgexperts.co.uk). The Buckinghamshire-based company is proving extremely popular with inspectors and assessors with over 300 already signed up with them across the country. More information about this partnership can be found on our website. Media coverage We were very pleased to have a story written about our experiences with EPCs and older properties in The Observer and the London Evening Standard over the past few weeks. This, in conjunction with coverage from RICS shows the thirst for stories about the environment. These articles can be downloaded from our website;         March 2007 It seems that global warming is having an effect on the glacial progress of HIPs. The demand for seminars for consumers and industry combined with the government’s marketing efforts suggests that April will be an extremely busy month for the HIP market. Although agents have told us that they expect changes with the publication of the regulations on 29th March, major surprises seem unlikely. However, we have been caught out before so can offer no guarantees. As ever, we will publish the details immediately they are available and send them to you by email. DEA Accreditation scheme launched On the 26th February, the government published a draft of the accreditation standards for the Domestic Energy Assessor (DEA) scheme. This invited companies to apply to become accredited assessors to ensure that adequate numbers of inspectors can be trained. The deadline for applications was last Friday and it is expected that the take-up will be strong with companies being approved by the end of April.  Training companies are reporting record levels of interest in this qualification and confidence amongst suppliers is high that there will be sufficient inspector coverage by June 1st. Government marketing campaign update As mentioned in last month’s newsletter, the government started a limited consumer marketing campaign in February, with a national campaign due this month. This has been slightly delayed, as the bid process for advertising companies will only finish next week. The budget for the campaign is sizeable and we have heard this may be extended to include television coverage, primarily focusing on Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs). Last week, the government sent a mailing directly to estate agents outlining their obligations and the current position on HIPs. This brochure and other promotional literature can be downloaded from our website; Inspector Recruitment DEA’s and Home Inspectors are still considering whether full-time employment will provide an adequate return on their investment in their training. From the increasing number of enquiries we have received recently, 95% are looking for independent work. Next month, we will be announcing our partner suppliers for managing EPC distribution for our clients and will be sending out questionnaires to our 350 registered inspector candidates. HIP Training We were delighted by the response to the announcement of our in-house training programme. We are looking at additional training options and will be making an important announcement in the coming weeks about this. In the meantime, if you are interested in learning more about our in-house offering, please visit our website; Media coverage There has been a significant increase in interest from the media about HIPs and EPCs in particular. We organised an EPC for The Times; we will be appearing in a national Sunday paper next week as well as being interviewed by a major London newspaper. In the trade press, the Law Society Gazette quoted us on the government consultation and our column in The Negotiator highlighted concerns about cheap HIPs and their impact.  These articles can be downloaded from our website;           February 2007 Uncertainty about the introduction of HIPs is clearly reducing. We are seeing major changes in attitudes towards them, with even the most sceptical estate agents accepting they will bring benefits in terms of uniformity to their instruction process. With critics such as the Law Society and SPLINTA now adopting a “better be prepared” attitude and the government unexpectedly announcing an early marketing campaign (see below) it is becoming more certain that on June 1st, HIPs will be a reality. One of the key characteristics of The Partnership is that we do not try to pressure clients into unecessary action. However, we are growing increasinhly concerned about the time needed by agents to adjust to the HIP instruction process. With 71 working days to go, we believe it is now becoming vital that agents familiarise themselves with the process and we have started running in-office training programmes. We recommend this is something all agents should consider sooner rather than later. Please email training@thepartnershiplimited.com for more information about our courses. HIP Marketing We are hearing from agents that they clients are starting to ask about HIPs. We recognise this is due partly to agents using HIPs to encourage sellers to put their properties on the market before June. However, it is clear that until the consumer marketing campaign starts, broad awareness will be unlikely. This may change soon, given that although the government was not planning to start the consumer marketing campaign until late March, last week it announced plans for an awareness programme that will start in a matter of days. The news section of our website has more details of this campaign. http://www.thepartnershiplimited.com/html/news.html Area Trials Although two new trial areas of North Wales and the London Borough of Southwark have been announced, the scheme has now moved into a second, potentially more revealing phase. From last week, vendors in the six existing areas are now entitled to subsidies that only cover the legal element of the HIP, and not the Home Condition Report (HCR). Although HCR take-up rates of 65% were quoted for the first phase, this change will test consumer acceptance of an inspection that they have to pay for. (Subsidies for full HIPs which include HCRs, are still available for the two new areas.) More details about participants and coverage of the area trials can be found here; http://www.thepartnershiplimited.com/html/dry_run.html Consultation Paper This Wednesday (21st February) the consultation period announced on 25th January for proposed changes to the HIP process will end. Although some commentators suggested this period was too short, overall, the feedback has been positive, especially since it reduces some of the impact of property marketing. One exception, however, has been the recommendation that agents put some element of the Energy Performance Certificate onto their property particulars. As it has not been determined whether this should be the full report (which can be up to 8 pages) or just the performance charts, this has raised considerable concern about duplication and increased print costs for agents. Media Coverage This month saw more media presence for The Partnership, with comments in the New Law Journal, Mortgage Introducer and articles in the Estate Agent Times. Over the coming months, we will be supporting a number of seminars, including Roger Coupe in Surrey, the EPEC show at Exel, London and 124Law seminars around the country. Details of these and other upcoming events will be published in a new section on our website and all the articles can be downloaded from the following location; http://www.thepartnershiplimited.com/html/media.html           January 2007 The new year has brought a significantly increased level of interest in The Partnership from across the property industry. We have seen double the number of visits to our website compared to previous months, with the highest level of enquiries from estate agents, solicitors and home inspectors at any time over the past two years.  With less than 100 working days left to go before the introduction of HIPs, companies are now looking at the practicalities involved and are finalising their plans. Although there is a feeling amongst some that this is just for contingency purposes, all the signs from the government confirm that June 1st will signal the start of HIPs. The Dry Run As a registered company in the government’s area trials, we have been interested in feedback from the first two months of the test. Despite being launched at a slow time of year for new property instructions, there are reports of over 600 HIPs produced to date as part of the trial, with over 65% containing Home Condition Reports. Given that these voluntary reports are provided free of charge this figure is unlikely to be representative of general market acceptance, but their production does increase consumer awareness of their content. Although the Association of HIP Providers has recently announced an extension of their “early rollout” scheme, this does not affect the government’s area trials, with subsidised HIPs still only available in the same six towns as before. More information about the area trials can be found on our website; http://www.thepartnershiplimited.com/html/dry_run.html Additional NLIS Provider MDA’s acquisition of SearchFlow last year meant that only two companies were able to provide authorised local authority searches electronically through the National Land Information Service (NLIS). It has been announced that Jordans Property has now been certified to provide authorised searches through this system, providing a choice of three suppliers for HIP providers and conveyancers. The Partnership uses authorised searches provided through NLIS because all lenders will accept these for mortgage purposes and the use of technology is more efficient than paper-based searches. HIP Trial We are delighted to announce that we are working with one of the country’s leading estate agents to provide HIPs in a trial that is due to start on February 1st. This is part of their preparation for their negotiators to become comfortable with the processes involved in HIP instruction, and also to ensure that the correct systems and procedures are in place. Media Coverage This month, comments and articles from The Partnership have appeared in a number of publications for the legal market. We appeared in the Surrey Lawyer, the magazine for the Law Society in Surrey and 124 Law, a magazine aimed at small solicitors firms.  Finally, in an article on domestic energy assessors, we were quoted in The Times, clearly demonstrating the rise in level of media interest in the scheme. As usual, copies of these articles can be downloaded from our website; http://www.thepartnershiplimited.com/html/media.html         November 2005 This is the first of our monthly emails designed to keep you informed of progress at The Partnership and the Home Information Pack programme. Please feel free to forward this onto your colleagues, or anyone else that is interested in receiving an update on Home Information Packs; alternatively, they can register directly on our website; click here to register. HIPs Go Live Date Having received the details of the regulations from the ODPM on the contents of the Home Information Packs, we were delighted to be notified that HIPs are going to become obligatory in June 2007. Whilst this is a little later than planned and with some groups critical of the timing, we welcome the announcement and the certainty that it brings. Click here for news First Complete HIP Pilot In conjunction with a major estate agent, we have successfully completed our first Home Information Pack that includes a Home Condition Report. The encouraging news was that the entire package was completed within the timescales allowed by the Housing Act. This puts The Partnership in an unusual position of being one of the only firms in England to have successfully completed a HIP and this is attracting a lot of interest from people looking for feedback on the effort and practicalities involved. We have been commissioned to do several more over the next few weeks, so are in a strong position to feed this information back to the ODPM in advance of the dry run, due next year. HIPAdvisor.com HIPAdvisor.com has been established to provide both businesses and the public with a web-based directory for services involved in the house buying and selling process. With providers looking to increase their market awareness in the short term, and in the longer term to help consumers choose companies that will provide Home Information Pack services, HIPAdvisor provides a single point of entry for all those interested in offering components of HIPs. The Partnership has been commissioned by HIPAdvisor.com to provide ongoing support and information over the next eighteen months. Website Update There has been a significant amount of information added to The Partnership website, and this will continue to grow over the coming months. There is a new section on the legislation click here including the regulations which were published recently. There are also details of the contents of the Home Information Packs click here where you can see the new forms that have been proposed as the new standard. Additional Office Space As a sign of our commitment to Home Information Packs, we have taken additional office space in Dorking, Surrey, which provides room for our planned growth over the next 12 months. Click here for details. We look forward to an exciting time ahead and are working hard to plan for the dry run in 2006 where we will be playing a very active role.         December 2005 There has been a very encouraging amount of progress in the Home Information Pack (HIP) market since the announcement last month of the go-live date of June 2007. Even critics of the scheme are now changing their message from “will they be introduced?” to “what do we need to do to prepare for their introduction?”. The Partnership is continuing to increase awareness of the importance of ongoing dialogue to ensure that we provide constructive feedback to the ODPM to ensure a workable implementation of HIPs. More Major Agents Producing HIPs As we continue to work closely with agents focusing on the high-end of the market, we are delighted to announce that we have produced a HIP for another major agent and have been instructed to deliver three more in the coming days. By working with agents producing HIPs for real properties, we have been able to increase our profile with the ODPM enabling us to represent agents’ concerns more effectively. The Partnership Published in SAVA Newsletter News of our increasingly influential role in the market is being promoted more widely than ever. SAVA, one of the key assessment centres for Home Inspectors, has published their latest newsletter in which The Partnership receives a prominent mention as their first partner to offer a complete HIP including a Home Condition Report. Click here for details Brian Scannell, Managing Director of SAVA says of The Partnership; "large and complex properties present particular challenges for HIP and HCR providers, which is why SAVA is delighted to be working with The Partnership to develop solutions for this important market”. The Partnership and RICS Earlier in the month, we were pleased to have an article about us published in the new RICS newsletter. This is sent to all RICS members who have registered an interest in becoming a Home Inspector, and generated many visits to our website.  You can download the newsletter here; Home Condition Reports details finalized We have been informed that the wording for the Home Condition Reports has been agreed although this will not be formally announced until the end of January. This is a key aspect of the scheme and will contribute to the increase in confidence that we are now witnessing first hand. More information about the Certification Scheme for Home Inspectors can be found here High-End Property Seminars Based on our unique experience in providing HIPs for more unusual properties we will be running seminars in 2006 to help agents understand the issues involved with such sales. These seminars are designed to help increase awareness of these issues and dates will be announced at the end of January 2006. Groundbreaking Partnership Announcement Next month, we will be announcing a major new partnership that will prove vital for the provision of HIPs for high-end properties. We look forward to announcing this in our next newsletter that will be delivered on 16th January 2006. At the end of 2005, with the regulations nearing completion, the development of the Home Inspector certification scheme underway, and an imminent announcement concerning the dry run in 2006, we look forward confidently to next year, and wish all our readers a happy Christmas and a peaceful New Year.             January 2006 According to many analysts, 2006 is the year in which HIPs start to become critical. Indeed, we have already seen a significant increase in interest from surveyors and home inspectors reflecting the confidence that people have in the scheme. The level of activity on our website is extraordinary, with our highest month to date in December. Historic Building Initiative One of the major concerns about home inspectors is confirming their ability to inspect historic and period properties. The Partnership, in conjunction with Bertram Taylor Chartered Surveyors and Morgan Whittaker have announced a major initiative with a proposal for an addition to the certification scheme for historic buildings. Once certified, surveyors will have demonstrable proof of their ability to inspect period properties. By working with The Partnership significant opportunities will become available through our access to high-end estate agents selling such properties. First HIP Property Exchanges The property for which one of the first complete HIPs was produced, has been sold. The thatched cottage in Newbury had been on the market since the summer. The HIP, produced in November, removed some of the buyer’s concerns giving them the confidence to complete the transaction. This is very encouraging and demonstrates how HIPs can produce genuine results. Surveyors Resources on Website In response to strong demand, we have added a new area to our website specifically aimed at surveyors and potential Home Inspectors. We were getting a lot of enquiries from inspectors looking for ways to contact other inspectors as well as training opportunities.  Any links and feedback are greatly welcomed – there are no limits to the quantity of links that can be included. Click here for details Consultation Period Ends The consultation period for feedback on the HIP programme finished on 31st December. Early adopters such as The Partnership have provided feedback to the ODPM who are now reviewing what changes, if any, should be made. With the final piece of legislation before Parliament by the end of March and an announcement on the Home Inspector’s certification scheme imminent, we expect considerable communication from the ODPM over the coming months. In next month’s newsletter due on the 20th February, we will be publishing more information about how local surveyors will be able to work with us, our continuing discussions with solicitors about unregistered land as well as articles in two leading journals.           February 2006 Over the past few weeks, we have seen an increase in the level of media interest in Home Information Packs. Understandably, the stories focus on negative concerns. One website, HIPFreeHomes quoted us as an authority which was very encouraging as it generated a lot of interest in our website.  On Monday evening at 8pm on ITV1, “Tonight With Trevor McDonald” is airing a programme on Home Information Packs. We were pleased to be invited to contribute and await the final results of the documentary. First HIP Completed for London Leasehold Flat We are delighted to announce the completion of a HIP for a London leasehold flat. This work enables us to investigate the major challenges of HIPs; obtaining the documentation for leasehold properties. We received significant assistance from the vendor’s solicitor, and will be publishing more information about this work in due course. Increased Media Coverage Our experience and work with unusual buildings continues to attract media attention. We were the leading article in February 10th edition of New Law Journal, one of the most respected publications for the legal market. It has a subscription readership of over 6000 and an estimated total readership of ten times that number. We were also the lead contributor for Period Living magazine published in February. We are pleased to have been invited to join the panel at the Home Buyers’s Show on 18th March in London, to share our experience of HIPs for leasehold properties. There will be a profile of the Partnership in The Negotiator magazine, the leading publication for estate agents, in March, along with another article in the New Law Journal. Local Surveyor Relationships Since Christmas, we have received significant interest from surveyors considering becoming Home Inspectors. One of their key requirements is to continue their relationships with local estate agent offices. We fully support this concept. This is the driving force behind our decision to work with the leading software provider to enable us to provide work to inspectors in the future. Later this year, we will be announcing our unique approach to inspector instruction. The early signs are that it will be extremely popular.  Historic Building Initiative We are continuing to work on the historic building initiative. We have now finished our initial discussions with all the assessment centres and the feedback has been very positive. We are planning a workshop for April 20th and if you are interested in attending this ground-breaking session, then please visit; In next month’s newsletter due on the 20th March, we will announce an exiting new development for London leasehold properties as well as an agreement with the leading supplier of self-help legal products.           March 2006 We are pleased to see that the awareness of HIPs is definitely on the increase with a documentary on prime-time television, “Tonight With Trevor McDonald”. The topic has also been covered on breakfast television and featured on the front page of a recent Financial Times. With the legislation moving forward, it is vital that media coverage such as this increases. HIPs Timeline One of the key concerns of the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) was the lack of communication from the ODPM about the details of the rollout of the HIP programme. We were delighted to receive notification and details of the timeline for the rollout of HIPs. This brings much more certainty to those involved in the programme and should address many concerns. HIP Promotional Campaign We were very encouraged to learn that in April, the government will embark on a promotional campaign to the property industry to help inform them about HIPs. We are working closely with the public relations agency involved, providing feedback from the market and the genuine concerns of estate agents and home inspectors. The Dry-Run There has recently been media coverage about the Dry Run for HIPs. While the Association of HIP Providers (AHIPPs) has announced that they will be running a pilot in Cambridge, it is important to note that this is NOT the official dry run as promised by the government. We welcome this promotional initiative but are concerned that it could be confused as the official dry run.  The Partnership will continue to produce pilot HIPs with estate agents to help them understand the implications of Home Information Packs. We are continuing to evaluate the benefits of becoming a member of AHIPPs. Search Company Mergers There have been two acquisitions of National Land Information Services (NLIS) search companies that provider search information that will be needed for HIPs. This means that there are now only two suppliers, although this is expected to increase later this year. Our partner, SearchFlow, the leading NLIS provider, has been acquired by MDA, who own Transaction Online, another NLIS provider. The final provider, TM Online, has been bought by the property website company and HIP provider, RightMove. Media Coverage We were pleased to be given excellent coverage in the most recent edition of The Negotiator magazine from the 10th March. The magazine is one of the leading journals for estate agents and in an excellent article by Rosalind Renshaw, we were given the opportunity to explain our philosophy towards tackling more complex properties including leasehold flats and unusual historic buildings. Click here to download the article. In addition, an article appeared in New Law Journal and we were invited to present at two seminars at the Home Buyers Show, at Excel, London. In next month’s newsletter due on the 17th April we will be able to give more details on our plans for London leasehold properties as well as an important strategic agreement.           April 2006 You will have noticed that HIPs are receiving more media coverage than ever before. Whilst much of the press has been negative, we have seen a subtle shift in the past few weeks towards acceptance of their introduction. Even the Mail on Sunday, carried an article about the benefits that a HIP brought a particular couple. Both The Observer and Estate Agent News have published articles about the inevitability of their introduction and we expect this to increase. ODPM Marketing Campaign There has been concern that the government has not been communicating information about HIPs to the industry. A major marketing initiative announced earlier this month is now set to address this. We have already seen increased website visitors thanks to the new website and advertisements are appearing in prominent trade journals. More details are available in the news section of our website Home Inspection Provision - Network Surveyors We pride ourselves on working with only the most professional companies on the market. Although we were approached by all the large surveying panels for the provision of Home Inspectors, we have selected Network Surveyors for this service. This relationship, along with SAVA for home inspectors who want to use their Business Exchange service, will give us the national coverage that our clients need. More details are available in the news section of our website HIPs for Leasehold Properties Prospective HIP providers tend to avoid the topic of HIPs for leasehold properties because it is complex and can involve significant work. However, we are in active discussions with the ODPM about the issues involved and are finalizing a scheme with a solicitor’s practice for an effective and workable solution for London. We are working with agents and solicitors on this matter; please email leasehold@thepartnershiplimited.com if you are interested in contributing. Media Coverage The Partnership was invited to a televised debate on HIPs and how they will affect the legal profession. In a lively two hour programme on LegalTV, we shared a platform with experienced solicitors and anti