The Building Societies Association (BSA) welcomes plans by the Government to make the Home Condition Report (HCR) part of Home Information Packs (HIPs) voluntary.
A survey of building society chief executives in May 2006 found that 84% of them believed that HIPs would have a negative effect on the housing market and that they should consequently be made voluntary.
Yvette Cooper, the DCLG Minister responsible for HIPs, announced the climb down yesterday.
The HCR was going to be one of the most important parts of the HIP. It was also going to be one of the most problematic and, for sellers, the most expensive. Making the HCR voluntary will allow the market to determine the demand for such reports and give both buyers and sellers the opportunity to see how they will work in practice. And critically, it will also avoid the potential disruption of the housing market that many, including BSA, have forecast for next year as a consequence of the HCR requirement.
Making HCRs voluntary will also allow HCR providers to ensure that what they are providing fully meets the needs of both buyers and sellers, and to evolve to meet market demand. And if sellers who provide buyers with a HCR find that they realise the benefits that Government claim, then demand for them will take off, without the risks that compulsion entailed.
Neil Johnson from BSA commented: "The Government's decision yesterday represented welcome recognition of the possible dangers that HCRs posed to the housing market. We hope and trust that they will be similarly realistic with the implementation of the rest of the Home Information Pack."
