News
December 2007
Leaseholds explained
The introduction of Home Information Packs (HIPs) for all properties on 14th December 2007 also saw some major changes with regard to HIPs on Leasehold properties.
Delays in producing HIPs on leasehold properties, has led to new government legislation requiring the inclusion of Service Charge accounts, insurance documents and other leasehold documents in the HIP.
But….
What you need to do now
The one leasehold document that is required now in a HIP is a copy of the Lease itself. This document is generally available at Land Registry and can therefore be obtained by OpenBook quickly and for just £20 extra.
From June 1st 2008..
Leasehold HIPs will need:
- A copy of the lease
- Name and address of Landlord & Managing Agents
- Service Charge statements over last 36 months
- Financial requests made by Landlord over the last 12 months
- Regulations or rules made under the lease
- Proposed amendments to the lease
- Summary of proposed building works
The increased number of documents and searches will mean additional administration time and fees, so our fee for leasehold properties HIPs is an extra £70.
What some of the estate agents are saying
A number of agents have told us that they’ve been disappointed by these interim arrangements as they found that by having the leasehold documents available weeks before exchange of contract, they had greatly reduced the stress and delays for the buyer and their solicitor; and reducing the possibilities of contracts falling through.
On the other hand, as HIPs are now required for all one and two beds, its clear that estate agents and HIP providers will have some extra time to bed down the processes during traditionally the busiest sales time of the year.
Give us a call now to see how we can get your HIPs started on 0845 013 2450