Is there a secret agenda behind the full roll out of HIPS?
HIPS, the much maligned Home Information Packs will finally become a requirement for all residential properties marketed after 14th December. They were originally scheduled to be rolled out in full on 1st June 2007 but were initially restricted to properties with more than 3 bedrooms.
With increased talk of a property slowdown, and even some saying there will be a meltdown, is the government merely exacerbating the state of the property market, or does it have something else up its sleeve?
The threat that sellers may be reluctant to put their property on the market because of the costs of having a HIP may be playing into the government’s hands. After all, a slow down in supply of property would mean that the dwindling demand remains buoyed up, and prices would perhaps hover rather than crash.
Yes this is a cynical view but remember that we’re dealing with politicians. These are folk that would like very much to avoid an economic collapse on their watch. So much bad economic news around, such as Northern Rock and the loss of 25 million people’s personal details, means that the government wants to avoid any more PR disasters. A property crash would be the end for this government, roll out the HIPs they cry.
