Training companies STILL trying to lure HIP trainees

Hop on the HIP bandwagon now – alarmingly, that is still the message from training companies.

Unwitting individuals are still being persuaded to part with their hard-earned money to pursue careers which may have only a few months left to run.

An advert spotted in only yesterday’s Daily Mail says: ‘Retrain for a new and exciting career as a Home Information Pack provider’. It appeared in the ‘Learning and Personal Development’ section of the paper.

It goes on: “Due to new government legislation, all homes put up for sale need a HIP – that’s over 1.5m per year – with record levels of demand from people forced to sell due to debt or repossession.

“You can earn up to £800 per week and work flexible hours in this Government backed industry. No experience required.”

The story gets better (or worse, depending on your point of view). A three-day workshop that normally costs £1,250 (plus VAT) is now just £875 (plus VAT) for the first 25 bookings.

It was an offer Estate Agent Today could not refuse (well, actually we could, but we weren’t saying). We phoned Yourhipsearch to hear more. Their man Andy told us there are “very good margins’ on HIPs: “You can get about £150 per HIP for an hour’s worth of work.”

But, erm, what happens if those nasty Tories win the election next year and put a dampener on this nice little earner?

Yes, Andy had read some conflicting news reports, too. Those Conservatives may be changing HIPs or putting a different slant on them, he said. But the training is not just about HIPs – there’s local authority search and energy assessment work too.

And now for the knockout sales pitch from the training provider. If HIPs are reduced or scrapped, there would be “massively reduced” rates on further courses for previous trainees.

The training, incidentally, is quality accredited by ABBE, the Awarding Body for the Built Environment. And if you want to become a Home Inspector (not just a ‘HIP Inspector’), the ten-day course is £5,500 (plus VAT).

Watford, Warrington and Wolverhampton are the places to go for training.

Estate Agent Today supplies the facts (which we hadn’t realised are picked up on the Yourhipsearch website news page, albeit under subtly different headlines). We leave it to you to decide whether to quit the day job.