The Berkeley HIP proposition, in conjunction with The Live Organisation, the Camberley-based provider of residential conveyancing, will be offering a fully-funded HIP to all estate agents who are linked to advisers of the BBB Group.
Berkeley HIP will enable packs to be produced without up-front charges to the client or the estate agent. In addition, it will not charge fees if the client pulls out of the sale or if the property cannot be sold.
It estimates each pack will be charged at around £500 while it intends to turn these packs around, from start to finish, in approximately five days.
In addition, the service will enable advisers within its IFA and mortgage networks, Berkeley Independent Advisers (BIA) and Professional Mortgage Network (PMN), to forge new relationships with potential business sources in the property field.
Dale Knight, director of mortgages at BBB, commented: “This is the first wave of mortgage initiatives planned and shows BBB’s intention to lead the way with innovation. The Live Organisation has already produced over 30,000 home packs which will assist us in offering the most unrivalled solution for our members.”
The government recently announced that a ‘dry-run’ of the HIPs initiative will take place in 2006. BBB is also planning a dry-run for summer 2006.
Tony Jones, director of Pink Home Loans, commented: “BBB is launching well in advance. I applaud it for its innovation but I’m not sure the public has bought into HIPs yet. Consumers on the whole are not aware of the changes. We are currently in discussions with lenders about HIPs but we will not be launching imminently.”
