With the revamped introduction of HIPs set to launch on 1 August, for properties with four or more bedrooms, the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Department for Communities and Local Government, Baroness Andrews, explained that expenditure for the project had continued, despite market reservations.
get the daily news delivered to your inbox
Baroness Andrews confirmed that since 13 March 2007, £8,076,466 had been spent on HIPs.
Mike Pendergast, IFA at Zen Financial Services was unsurprised by the costs revealed.
He commented: “A lot of firms have been set up to offer HIPs and with the training involved, £8 million would be about right.”
download our news ticker
In its own study, Saga indicated that 47 per cent of home owners were opposed to the HIP, with research suggesting that 75 per cent of those asked would be prepared to lie to get round the system. The research also showed that many would not trust the contents of a HIP.
Pendergast added: “It would depend on the advice from estate agents, but I think it’s a distinct possibility that four-bed properties will be labelled as a three-bed with a study.”
