A weekly news summary covering all aspects of the housebuilding industry. Available to members only.
Government News
HIPs regulations laid and due for implementation on 1 June 2007
The Home Information Pack Regulations were laid before Parliament on Thursday. Following the consultation in January, a number of changes have been made and as a result, the Regulations require that:
For a transitional period, sellers can market their homes with a HIP that initially includes only the Energy Performance Certificate (EPC), sale statement, evidence of title and index; and evidence that other documents have been commissioned and will be included in the pack as soon as practicable (and certainly within 28 days);
The EPC is included as the first document in the pack, following the index;
For those properties that cannot have an EPC - such as those bought ‘off-plan' - a separate predicted energy assessment will be included;
The duty to refresh time-sensitive parts of the HIP will not arise where the property is re-marketed by the same seller within one year of the original marketing date;
Personal search companies will be allowed to use insurance immediately for those parts of the search where they cannot gain access to data. This will only apply for a transitional period until April 2008;
Properties already on the market by 1 June 2007 will not need a HIP unless they remain on the market after 31 December 2007.
The Regulations and procedural guidance plus a summary of the consultation responses are available on the HBF website click here
A HBF briefing on HIPs and EPCs will follow in due course.
Full EPC not required for new homes until October 2007
Following a series of meetings between HBF and CLG to discuss the timing and other issues raised by HBF in relation to EPCs for new homes, the Government have announced that a full EPC will not be required for physically complete new homes until 1 October 2007. The regulations also state that an EPC is not required for any off plan sales before the construction of the building has been completed, but other requirements imposed by the Home Information Pack Regulations 2007 will apply as follows:
"Predicted Energy Assessments" will be required from 1 June 2007 until further notice for all homes marketed prior to physical completion.
"Interim Energy Assessments" will be required between 1 June and 30 September 2007 for physically complete new dwellings built to 2006 energy efficiency standards being offered for sale.
With effect from 1 October 2007, full EPCs and recommendations reports produced by accredited energy assessors will be required for the sale of new homes once the home is physically complete.
Anyone (not just accredited energy assessors) can produce Predicted or Interim Energy Assessments, and they do not have to be lodged in the register for EPCs.
HBF is continuing to discuss with CLG arrangements for the full EPCs required from October for new home sales on physical completion and we will report further on this.
Strategic Housing Market Assessments: Practice Guidance published
The practice guidance relating to Strategic Housing Market Assessments (which includes related guidance on identifying sub-regional housing market areas) has been published. It sets out a framework that local authorities and regional bodies can follow to develop a good understanding of how housing markets operate. It promotes an approach to assessing housing need and demand which can inform the development of local development documents and regional spatial strategy planning for housing policies, as set out in Planning Policy Statement 3: Housing (PPS3)
Identifying sub-regional housing market areas: Advice note
Modernising and strengthening Building Control
The Government has launched a major modernisation of the Building Control system with the publication of a paper detailing its vision for how the system can be improved.
The Future for Building Control sets out a package of options covering possible changes to both the Building Regulations themselves and the process of building control that the Government is minded to develop further and invites interested parties to provide suggestions on how reform should proceed. The publication follows detailed discussions with key members of industry on the strengths and weaknesses of the current system, which have highlighted the strong case for reform. The Government has taken account in its proposals of the ideas put forward by the HBF over the last year.
Design manual aims to put well-designed residential streets at the heart of sustainable communities
New guidance on street design aims to breathe new life into communities by creating safe and sustainable environments for residents, Transport Minister Gillian Merron announced this week.
Manual for Streets, a joint publication between the Department for Transport and Communities and Local Government, emphasises the importance of residential streets in the creation of places in which people want to live. In particular it aims to reduce the impact of vehicles on residential streets by asking practitioners to plan street design intelligently and proactively, and gives a high priority to the needs of pedestrians, cyclists and users of public transport.
HBF was on the Steering Group for the Manual from its inception and is delighted that this joint DFT and CLG initiative has now been published. We believe that it will now be possible for Planners and Highway Engineers to agree on street designs earlier in the development process and that the new emphasis on a holistic and flexible approach will benefit all our members.
Link to Manual for Streets publication
Construction Industry Scheme changes imminent as 6 April 2007 approaches
With the new Construction Industry Scheme (New CIS) going live on 6 April, contractors are being urged by HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) to make sure that they can hit the ground running.
From April, registration cards and tax certificates will no longer be valid, and will be replaced with a verification service. Contractors will be able to verify with HMRC whether the person or firm they are engaging is registered as a subcontractor, and whether the subcontractor should be paid gross or have money deducted, by going online or phoning the Department.
There are a number of steps contractors need to undertake before entering into a working arrangement with a subcontractor. For further details click here
Proposed Merger Of Taylor Woodrow And George Wimpey
The Boards of Taylor Woodrow plc and George Wimpey Plc have announced that they have reached agreement on the terms of a recommended all-share merger to create Taylor Wimpey plc. Taylor Wimpey will be the UK's largest house building group with combined pro forma annual revenues of over £6.7 billion, total UK house completions of approximately 22,000 per annum, total North American house completions of approximately 9,000 per annum and a combined market capitalisation of approximately £5 billion.
Nottingham City Building Balanced Communities Supplementary Planning Document Re-issued March 2007
The Building Balanced Communities Supplementary Planning Document (originally issued in March 2006) has been re-issued by Nottingham City Council, removing its original provisions on family housing. HBF voiced its objections to the original document due to a prescriptive policy seeking 80% family housing on all sites and raised these concerns with Government Office of the East Midlands. Following a successful Judicial Review Nottingham City Council has lifted the restrictions imposed by the family housing policy.
2016 Task Force meets for the second time and defines its terms of reference
HBF Executive Chairman Stewart Baseley chaired the second 2016 Task Force meeting held at the HBF's London offices this week. The Task Force discussed practical means to advance work on the key issues involved in achieving the proposed 2016 zero carbon building standard, the definition of zero carbon and the basis for a Concordat to guide future collaborative action by the main parties. Co-chair Housing and Planning Minister Yvette Cooper MP also attended the meeting.
The agreed terms of reference for the Taskforce have been published on the CLG website as follows:
The 2016 Taskforce will
1. Identify the barriers to implementation of the zero carbon 2016 target, and put in place measures to address them.
2. Develop a Concordat for publication alongside the final 'Building a Greener Future' policy statement, which will set out the respective roles of central and local government and business as we move towards the zero carbon 2016 target.
3. Develop a timeline for steps that need to be taken over the next ten years to support the implementation of the zero carbon 2016 target.
House Price Inflation eases and net mortgage lending increases
Nationwide's index of annual house price inflation eased to 9.3% in March, from 10.2% in the previous month.
Latest figures from the Bank of England show that net mortgage lending increased to £10.3bn in February, up from £9.5bn in January. The number of mortgage approvals remained unchanged in February at £119,000.
Jo Turner