If you are a solicitor or licensed conveyancer, you will naturally be concerned about the effect that the introduction of Home Information Packs will have on your practice. At Surehome, we believe that HIPs represent a valuable opportunity for your profession to reinforce its role at the centre of the conveyancing process. The real issue is WHICH lawyers?

Keep conveyancing local

Large corporate HIP providers will be instructing legal organisations all over the UK and beyond to provide the legal input necessary. This could also mean that the seller will come under considerable pressure to employ the same organisation to continue the conveyancing process once they have found a buyer. Local solicitors and conveyancers may find that their conveyancing business simply evaporates.

Legal continuity

At Surehome we believe that the interest of both the local property lawyer and the seller are best served by the involvement of that lawyer from the outset. While the seller's initial point of contact will continue to be the estate agent, under the Surehome scheme, the agent will discuss with the seller which legal adviser they wish to use. Provided that the preferred firm has signed up to the Surehome service agreement, the agent can make immediate contact with them so that the process of assembling the HIP can start.

The intention is that the seller will become the client of the property lawyer at the HIP stage and the expectation would be that the same lawyer would continue with the legal process once the property has been sold. We believe that by independent property professionals acting together in this way, the position of the local property lawyer will be strengthened and not eroded by the introduction of Home Information Packs.

Join Surehome now

If you want to be part of an organisation run by local professionals for the benefit of us all, please join us now. Membership is free and all you have to do is click here to register. You can be sure of a warm welcome.