The results of the August HIP Awareness Index showed:
Awareness
With less than a year until HIPs go live, the number of estate agents who were able to describe with some degree of accuracy what a HIP was rose to 83 per cent (73 per cent in July). While this is good news, further discussion revealed that most respondents lacked in-depth knowledge of the basic principals of the pack. In addition, it was revealed that only managers have received training on HIPs, showing that agencies are still choosing selective rather than blanket education on these products.
Home Condition Reports
Following the government’s u-turn on Home Condition Reports (HCRs), a little over a third of estate agents (35 per cent) are still expecting HIPs to become a reality in June 2007. Many of these respondents thought that although HIPs will be implemented, their format would still need to be reviewed. The survey also found that 34 per cent believed that the lack of a HCR will halt the implementation of HIPs altogether, with 31 per cent being unsure as to how this change will affect the
Condition of Housing Stock
Just under half of the estate agents surveyed (49 per cent), did not believe that HIPs will have an impact in improving the condition and sustainability of housing stock. Only 20 per cent of estate agents believe that HIPs will improve housing stock, with 31 per cent unsure of the effect that it will have.
Karen Babington, marketing director of Easier2move, commented: "Unsurprisingly, the government u-turn has caused estate agents to lose confidence in the potential reality of HIPS and as a result opinion is split. Many stated that making the HCR voluntary will have a negative effect on the implementation of HIPs, possibly halting the scheme altogether.
"At Easier2move, we believe that the removal of the HCR has drastically reduced the potential usefulness of HIPs and are concerned that this move could mean that the government may change the launch date or scrap this initiative altogether. We will be watching market developments carefully.
"It is also disappointing to find that 49 per cent of estate agents do not believe that HIPs will improve the condition and sustainability of housing stock, which was the Department for Communities and Local Government’s intention for actualizing the scheme. The government will need to address this problem in order to make the scheme more appealing and fulfill their original intention."
