Home Condition Reports 

What is a HCR? 

In their determination to simplify the process of buying and selling houses, the government has introduced the concept of Home Information Packs (HIPs).These were originally intended to include all the necessary information required to sell a house, collated together prior to the house going onto the market.

A key component was to be the Home Condition Report (HCR) which is a comprehensive survey of the property conducted by a Home Inspector.

In July 2006, the HCR element of HIPs was downgraded to a voluntary document but in some parts of the country there is a growing demand for these surveys.

 Why? Well the answer is very simple.

The HCR is a robust and objective view of the condition of a property on the day of inspection. The Home Inspector, wherever possible, inspects every element of the building and scores the condition of each component part.

 The benefit to potential buyers is they know what they are buying.

The benefit to sellers is that they can be confident in getting the asking price either because there is nothing wrong with the property or because the price now reflects the areas which may need some attention.

Some sceptics believe that its validity is tainted by the seller commissioning the survey.

Well, not so.

The Home Inspector has to conduct his inspection on behalf of the property and not the occupier. He cannot be seen to be in favour of the seller and stringent checks are in place to ensure reported findings are accurate and impartial.

If you would like to commission a Home Condition Report, please return the order form on the ORDERS page.