Property Survey

[SSG1000]

• Not sure if this is best placed here - so happy for mods to relocate

I've just purchased a property and looking to get it surveyed. However, which one should I go for?

Homebuyers Report or Building Survey?

The property is in a state of repair and will be undergoing extension rennovations. So would definitely need to look at the existing foundations etc.

Any advice is appreciated

[CharlesElliott]

If you have a mortgage, they will insist on doing a valuation survey of some sort.

Neither of the surveys you mention will cover foundations - in fact, surveys don't do anything intrusive generally. Take a look here: https://www.which.co.uk/money/mortgages-and-proper...

[anonymous-user]

CharlesElliott said:

If you have a mortgage, they will insist on doing a valuation survey of some sort.

Neither of the surveys you mention will cover foundations - in fact, surveys don't do anything intrusive generally. Take a look here: https://www.which.co.uk/money/mortgages-and-proper...

I would never advise someone not to have one, especially if they had no idea at what they were looking at. But in my experience the surveys I have had done highlight the obvious and everything else is covered by a caveat. For example

1)Path to front of house is cracked (big deal)
2)Roof is over 25 years old, might need repairs soon.
3)We recommend you get the heating/plumbing/electrics checked by a professional.
4)Wall ties might be rusty (nobody will ever know as you cannot see them)
5)Poked my head in the loft, but there was no light/boxes in the way so I shut the hatch and ignored it.
6)Bit of mould around the bathroom window.
7)Decor condition is average (No it was grim, hence why we completely renovated the house)

Cut and paste word document, few photos £1000 please.

What they missed was the massive hole under the bath where the shower had been leaking for years. But as was said above, they are not allowed to move anything so they can only survey what they can see.

If you can spot a leaky gutter and the signs of movement and know what damp smells/feels like then you will be fine.

[av185]

Currently acting for homebuyers in a potential negligence case against their 'professional builder friend' who advised them to purchase a property with major structural issues which he failed to spot.

All because they were more concerned with saving a few quid on the survey and thought their friendly builder had the same knowlege and experience as a qualified surveyor.

Never ceases to amaze me what shortcuts folks will go to to save a bit of money ££ when spending their life savings.

[tuffer]

CharlesElliott said:

If you have a mortgage, they will insist on doing a valuation survey of some sort.

Neither of the surveys you mention will cover foundations - in fact, surveys don't do anything intrusive generally. Take a look here: https://www.which.co.uk/money/mortgages-and-proper...

Not the case, we have just been through this and for the first two properties the lender did not request a survey but on the third one (first two fell through for various reasons) they have, probably because the house has not had a mortgage before (current owners bought for cash 36 years ago).
Regarding a survey, we requested a full level 3 on the second house, approx £1K. Money would have been better spent getting a few trades people to go and look at the place and bunging them a couple of hundred quid. RICS report not worth the money.

[tuffer]

av185 said:

Currently acting for homebuyers in a potential negligence case against their 'professional builder friend' who advised them to purchase a property with major structural issues which he failed to spot.

All because they were more concerned with saving a few quid on the survey and thought their friendly builder had the same knowlege and experience as a qualified surveyor.

Never ceases to amaze me what shortcuts folks will go to to save a bit of money ££ when spending their life savings.

On the flip side, I used a RICS certified surveyor and they did not inspect in the roof, the cellar or the septic tank......The three areas I specifically asked them to inspect and the three areas that, through my own research, caused me to withdraw from the purchase.

[av185]

tuffer said:

av185 said:

Currently acting for homebuyers in a potential negligence case against their 'professional builder friend' who advised them to purchase a property with major structural issues which he failed to spot.

All because they were more concerned with saving a few quid on the survey and thought their friendly builder had the same knowlege and experience as a qualified surveyor.

Never ceases to amaze me what shortcuts folks will go to to save a bit of money ££ when spending their life savings.

On the flip side, I used a RICS certified surveyor and they did not inspect in the roof, the cellar or the septic tank......The three areas I specifically asked them to inspect and the three areas that, through my own research, caused me to withdraw from the purchase.

Seems odd if ypu specifically asked him or her to inspect.

Emphasises why it is always best to try and instruct a LOCAL surveyor preferably with knowlege of the actual property and experience of the area as a whole and ideally have an actual conversation with them specifying your areas of concern about the property before they undertake the inspection.

[tuffer]

av185 said:

tuffer said:

av185 said:

Currently acting for homebuyers in a potential negligence case against their 'professional builder friend' who advised them to purchase a property with major structural issues which he failed to spot.

All because they were more concerned with saving a few quid on the survey and thought their friendly builder had the same knowlege and experience as a qualified surveyor.

Never ceases to amaze me what shortcuts folks will go to to save a bit of money ££ when spending their life savings.

On the flip side, I used a RICS certified surveyor and they did not inspect in the roof, the cellar or the septic tank......The three areas I specifically asked them to inspect and the three areas that, through my own research, caused me to withdraw from the purchase.

Seems odd if ypu specifically asked him or her to inspect.

Emphasises why it is always best to try and instruct a LOCAL surveyor preferably with knowlege of the actual property and experience of the area as a whole and ideally have an actual conversation with them specifying your areas of concern about the property before they undertake the inspection.

And that is exactly what I did.

[blueg33]

tuffer said:

av185 said:

Currently acting for homebuyers in a potential negligence case against their 'professional builder friend' who advised them to purchase a property with major structural issues which he failed to spot.

All because they were more concerned with saving a few quid on the survey and thought their friendly builder had the same knowlege and experience as a qualified surveyor.

Never ceases to amaze me what shortcuts folks will go to to save a bit of money ££ when spending their life savings.

On the flip side, I used a RICS certified surveyor and they did not inspect in the roof, the cellar or the septic tank......The three areas I specifically asked them to inspect and the three areas that, through my own research, caused me to withdraw from the purchase.

I have just had a Homebuyers done and they did inspect the roof, septic tank (even though its on adjoining land), drains, even the shed which is 50 metres from the main house

Price £500 give or take

[tuffer]

blueg33 said:

I have just had a Homebuyers done and they did inspect the roof, septic tank (even though its on adjoining land), drains, even the shed which is 50 metres from the main house

Price £500 give or take

Exactly, it is a complete minefield and purely down to the competency of the surveyor.

[blueg33]

tuffer said:

blueg33 said:

I have just had a Homebuyers done and they did inspect the roof, septic tank (even though its on adjoining land), drains, even the shed which is 50 metres from the main house

Price £500 give or take

Exactly, it is a complete minefield and purely down to the competency of the surveyor.

I think its down to the brief too. I gave the surveyor an extensive brief and flagged the issues that concerned me. (Grade 2 listed barn conversion)

[tuffer]

blueg33 said:

I think its down to the brief too. I gave the surveyor an extensive brief and flagged the issues that concerned me. (Grade 2 listed barn conversion)

Which is what I did, paid for a level 3 and specifically asked them to investigate the Septic tank as it was a shared resource managed by a 3rd party and close to a pond, the Cellar which had flooded earlier this year and had some rotten timbers embedded in the floor and the loft space as we wanted to know the state of the insulation. The report stated the septic tank was not on the property so outside of their remit, the loft space was difficult to access so did not check it (simply a loft hatch above the stairs) and did not mention anything about the cellar other than the floor timbers for the room above showed signs of damp and historical infection (nothing regarding the floor).
We chose not to move forward with the property as during my own research I found the septic tank was not compliant and posed too great a risk going forward despite the offer of a drop in price. The only issues the report did highlight were items such as poor pointing and spalling of bricks as well as some rotten windows, I am no builder or surveyor but had managed to work those points out for myself.

[surveyor]

tuffer said:

blueg33 said:

I think its down to the brief too. I gave the surveyor an extensive brief and flagged the issues that concerned me. (Grade 2 listed barn conversion)

Which is what I did, paid for a level 3 and specifically asked them to investigate the Septic tank as it was a shared resource managed by a 3rd party and close to a pond, the Cellar which had flooded earlier this year and had some rotten timbers embedded in the floor and the loft space as we wanted to know the state of the insulation. The report stated the septic tank was not on the property so outside of their remit, the loft space was difficult to access so did not check it (simply a loft hatch above the stairs) and did not mention anything about the cellar other than the floor timbers for the room above showed signs of damp and historical infection (nothing regarding the floor).
We chose not to move forward with the property as during my own research I found the septic tank was not compliant and posed too great a risk going forward despite the offer of a drop in price. The only issues the report did highlight were items such as poor pointing and spalling of bricks as well as some rotten windows, I am no builder or surveyor but had managed to work those points out for myself.

I often have to access roof voids in the process of getting onto a roof. A trapdoor over stairs would concern me too. I'd really want to have a harness on and somewhere secure to fasten it onto before I went near that. I then have a second concern as generally we have to consider whether a 2nd person will be required. There is an issue that if you fall wearing a harness help may be needed to recover.

Essentially your fee may not have been enough to make it worth while to the surveyor putting his life on the line,

[av185]

Strange that some clients seem to think a qualified general practice surveyor should be an expert in all things including septic tanks.

We are experts in buildings and will advise accordingly.

A septic tank expert is presumably an expert in septic tanks.

[tuffer]

av185 said:

Strange that some clients seem to think a qualified general practice surveyor should be an expert in all things including septic tanks.

We are experts in buildings and will advise accordingly.

A septic tank expert is presumably an expert in septic tanks.

On the flip side, you pay £1,000 for a survey and you might expect someone to properly inspect the property and its services.

[av185]

tuffer said:

av185 said:

Strange that some clients seem to think a qualified general practice surveyor should be an expert in all things including septic tanks.

We are experts in buildings and will advise accordingly.

A septic tank expert is presumably an expert in septic tanks.

On the flip side, you pay £1,000 for a survey and you might expect someone to properly inspect the property and its services.

I agree but don't forget none of us have x ray eyes.

A good surveyor will first and foremost give proper advice on the building but will advise when they consider other expert/specialist reports are required.

The septic tank is one such area. Timber and damp specialist reports are another more frequent request.

[CubanPete]

I have never been impressed with surveys.

Our current house we had two, a mortgage survey (they did a homebuyers, though we requested a full survey) and then an independent structural survey.

Who advised it looked fine but for a full answer we should consult, a structural engineer, electrician, arborologist (sp?), etc. It was a £1k for 3/4 of a day's work. He didn't flag anything that I hadn't seen.

However... The advise we had was to think of it as a cheap insurance policy!

[av185]

CubanPete said:

I have never been impressed with surveys.

Our current house we had two, a mortgage survey (they did a homebuyers, though we requested a full survey) and then an independent structural survey.

Who advised it looked fine but for a full answer we should consult, a structural engineer, electrician, arborologist (sp?), etc. It was a £1k for 3/4 of a day's work. He didn't flag anything that I hadn't seen.

However... The advise we had was to think of it as a cheap insurance policy!

But you aren't paying £1k for just three quarters of a days work!

If a surveyor puts his name to a report on a property survey this will have to stand up in Court if need be.

You are paying for his expertise.

This is what many clients fail to understand.

And remind yourself what a plumber often charges merely for being called out.