A majority of estate agents believe that Home Information Packs (Hips) will come into force later this week, though few are openly advertising home sellers' new obligations under the scheme, research has found.

Despite the House of Lords recently calling for the introduction of Hips to be cancelled, it seems likely that they will become compulsory for the sellers of properties with four or more bedrooms on August 1st.

Concerns surrounding the possible cost of Hips to home sellers have been dismissed by some providers, with the Association of Home Information Pack Providers (Ahipp) recently claiming that the issue has been transformed into a 'political football'.

"The majority of packs will cost £300,” said Dominic Teller, a director at the Hip provider LMS.

"And most of what is included you have to pay on the other side of the transaction anyway.

"Saving money on this in a way that could potentially damage the value of your property makes no sense."

The comments coincide with those of the National Association of Estate Agents, with its chief executive Peter Bolton King claiming that many of its members are set to cover the cost of Hips for their clients.