HOUSE sellers in London are likely to have to pay around £1,000 up front to produce a mandatory home information pack when Government legislation to revolutionise the sales process comes into force in 2007.

The industry now has until December 31 to voice its opinion of the draft regulations published earlier this month.

A statement signed by the partners or directors of 22 leading agents in the capital claims the additional costs will outweigh any possible benefits.

"By the government's estimate, consumers lose £350million a year in the abortive costs of failed transactions but the extra cost of the pack will be well over £600 million a year," forecast the agents.

They believe up to 30 per cent of potential sellers will decide not to bother once they realise how much they will have to pay up front.

"This reduction of supply will lead to intense upward pressure on prices," say the objectors. "Sellers will no longer be able to market their homes immediately as there will be an enforced delay of up to two weeks while the HIP is prepared.

"The HIP will have no shelf life so if a property fails to sell in a short period of time the content will become out of date requiring further expenditure to update the documents. No prudent buyer will rely on a survey report that is more than three months old and they are unlikely to trust a survey commissioned by the seller."

The agents say lenders have so far failed to endorse the pack and they are under no obligation to accept the contents.

"Buyers will still face the cost of valuation inspections," say objectors. Among them were Dick Ford from Knight Frank, Peter Young from John D Wood, Andrew Scott from Lane Fox, Christopher Lacy from Savills and Gary Hersham from Beauchamp Estates.

They prophesy: "Consumers will be disappointed and angry to discover that the HIP will leave them facing many of the problems inherent in the property buying system."