News

Firsthips Review - July 2008 - For Lawyers

Lawyers' Review Welcome to the July 2008 issue of the Firsthips Review which includes news, advice and articles from the HIP industry front-line. We welcome comments and suggestions for additional content.

Firsthips Supports Exchange-ready HIPs

The Association of Home Information Pack Providers is working on a protocol for exchange-ready HIPs where the content of the HIP is extended beyond the current legal minimum requirement to include additional items that will provide the buyer's conveyancer with sufficient information to proceed to exchange of contracts without having to raise any additional enquiries or searches.

At the initial planning stage the government recommended that HIPs should include additional information and in particular a set of replies to standard enquiries along with copies of such items as planning and building regulations and any available warranties. The current regulations "recommend" that these items should be included but there is no mandatory requirement.

AHIPP is confident that a set of protocols for exchange-ready HIPs should be available within the next 2-3 months although they accept that this will lead on to the challenge of persuading the conveyancing lawyers to adopt the protocol.

House Prices in England and Wales Unchanged in May

According to the Land Registry House prices in England and Wales were unchanged in May and up 1.8% over the year, but it said that sales volumes during March were half of the number in March 2007, at 53,080.

The figures, which are based on completed property sales, are completely at odds with the sharp fall in house prices reported by the UK's major lenders. The Land Registry said annual house growth fell for the ninth month running. The average cost of a home was Ł183,266.

Lenders Insist on Valuation Transparency

Under new requirements announced by the Council for Mortgage Lenders, housebuilders will be required to tell mortgage lenders about any incentives they have given homebuyers, with the object of reducing the chance of new-build properties falling into negative equity.

The measures are a result of lenders' concerns that they could be offering mortgages based on a valuation of a property that is higher than the amount paid by the buyer following concerns that in some cases builders have been artificially inflating prices so that they can advertise discounts to potential buyers.

The Council of Mortgage Lenders said the changes, which will be introduced in September, would ensure that the valuation and conveyancing process would capture the true value of a property, reducing the risk of negative equity for both the lender and the borrower, where any builder or developer selling a newly built, converted or renovated home will be obliged to complete a form disclosing what incentives have been give to the buyer.

Getting the most from HIPs

Automated Deferred Payment

Firsthips has introduced a new clearer, simplified and automated process of deferred payment

Did You Know?

You can upload all your conveyancing documents including the draft contract and handle the conveyancing transaction online. You can cut down on your post bill and speed up the whole process. The system even keeps an automatic audit trail of all revised documents
Sellers and buyers can track the HIP and can also communicate with all parties via the message centre
Sellers lawyers can make the draft contract available to the buyer's lawyer through the Firsthips system

Why They Choose Us!

"The system online is easy and straight forward"
"Despite dreading the introduction of HIPS I was surprised how easy it was to organise instructing a HIP"
"Firsthips have made everything so uncomplicated with a speedy, cost effective service and a very easy to use website that even a technophobe like me can use!"
"With the use of the online training and tracking facility we have found the system both user friendly and professional"
"We have used Firsthips for the production of all our Home Information Packs and have found the system to be user friendly, efficient and the level of support offered to us has been excellent"

View testimonials

Great Value Floorplans from Ł15+VAT

NRG Experts, an EPC supplier to Firsthips users are pleased to be able to offer Floorplans on properties from 1 June. Delivered electronically to the solicitor/agency office and in a high-resolution jpeg format suitable for all leading estate agency software. The floorplans are created using CAD software and include square footage details and annotated kitchen appliances and bathroom fittings. Dimensions are also included but can be removed on request. The cost for a floorplan is simply Ł15 for each property from 1 to 6 bedrooms when added to the EPC visit by an NRG Experts energy assessor.

Any Feedback?

If you have any feedback regarding this newsletter, the firsthips system, HIPs in general or any stories you think are relevant and would like us to publish in the next newsletter, then please contact us.

Help and Advice?

We regularly update our FAQ section with useful and relevant information for our clients. Recent entries include some of the latest government clarifications regarding market concerns such as:

What constitutes marketing, and do 'informal or one-off viewings' trigger the HIP duties?
What constitutes requesting or ordering a HIP?
Do EPC graphs need to be included in the estate agents particulars?

Go to firsthips FAQ

Success stories

97% of EPCs ready within 3 days
Some EPCs produced in less than 48 hours!
HIPs assembled in less than 3 days
Lawyer gains new conveyancing business using Firsthips

Key Features

HIPs at competitive prices
No investment or long term commitment
Seller pays by debit/credit card or deferred payment up to 10 months
Take instructions with a one page simple form
Prospective buyers can securely view and print the HIP online
Estate agent can track viewings
Keep control over the complete process
The most flexible system. Fully automated or use your own suppliers for selected elements
EPC competitively priced from a nationwide panel or use your own DEA
Searches from a nationwide established group or use your own supplier
Communicate with all parties through the secure message centre
Document management enables you to have draft contract and any other documents you require per case