Survey on a 5 year old house
Discussion
davidjpowell said:
If no odd looking cracks or anything else suspicious I would not bother. Valuation should catch anything major.
The bank's valuation survey is for the benefit of the bank and simply confirms that the property actually exists and is worth what the bank is being told it is worth. Do NOT rely on the valuation survey for anything. It's only to let the bank know if they can get their money back when they reposess.
The fact that it's 5 years old doesn't mean it's free from problems and the NHBC guarentee does not cover you for everything.
I wouldn't go for a bespoke building survey automatically, but a homebuyers report is tailored to this sort of situation, i.e when a property is fairly new. It's a standardised reporting form that the RICS produce.
You're spending over a quater of a million pounds, a few hundred quid to have it checked is probably money well spent. Have it done by a local chartered building surveyor and you are bying the benefit of his insurance policy as well!
The RICS will put you on to someone in your area or you can PM me and I'll look someone up.
I hasten to add that I don't do residential stuff and have no vested interest!
The fact that it's 5 years old doesn't mean it's free from problems and the NHBC guarentee does not cover you for everything.
I wouldn't go for a bespoke building survey automatically, but a homebuyers report is tailored to this sort of situation, i.e when a property is fairly new. It's a standardised reporting form that the RICS produce.
You're spending over a quater of a million pounds, a few hundred quid to have it checked is probably money well spent. Have it done by a local chartered building surveyor and you are bying the benefit of his insurance policy as well!
The RICS will put you on to someone in your area or you can PM me and I'll look someone up.
I hasten to add that I don't do residential stuff and have no vested interest!
Mandat said:
davidjpowell said:
If no odd looking cracks or anything else suspicious I would not bother. Valuation should catch anything major.
The bank's valuation survey is for the benefit of the bank and simply confirms that the property actually exists and is worth what the bank is being told it is worth. Unless there are indications that there is something wrong a full survey is a waste of money.
I rather suspect that if I used your logic to defend myself when the house falls down the bank would be straight down to my PI insurer.
Puggit said:
Not sure why it's relevant? But 4 bed detached, £310k...
Not sure why it's relevant? But 4 bed detached, £310k...I am a residential chartered surveyor.
It can't be said enough.."Don't rely on the mortgage valuation when deciding whether or not to buy a property. "
This even applies to a five year old example. Chances are that the surveyor will find something and you may be able to haggle on the purchase price and get your fee back that way. The Homebuyers has recently been updated and its very 21st Century. A good report.
(Please don't rely on my P.I. insurance as some sort of "defects insurance". That is not what it is there for. PM me if you would like further advice.)
It can't be said enough.."Don't rely on the mortgage valuation when deciding whether or not to buy a property. "
This even applies to a five year old example. Chances are that the surveyor will find something and you may be able to haggle on the purchase price and get your fee back that way. The Homebuyers has recently been updated and its very 21st Century. A good report.
(Please don't rely on my P.I. insurance as some sort of "defects insurance". That is not what it is there for. PM me if you would like further advice.)
Easy_Targa said:
I am a residential chartered surveyor.
It can't be said enough.."Don't rely on the mortgage valuation when deciding whether or not to buy a property. "
This even applies to a five year old example. Chances are that the surveyor will find something and you may be able to haggle on the purchase price and get your fee back that way. The Homebuyers has recently been updated and its very 21st Century. A good report.
(Please don't rely on my P.I. insurance as some sort of "defects insurance". That is not what it is there for. PM me if you would like further advice.)
I mentioned PI insurance, and you're quite right, it's not defect insurance and I apologise if I gave that impression. What it is, is a degree of comfort for a client that if something is missed on a survey in a negligent manner there is some recourse. It can't be said enough.."Don't rely on the mortgage valuation when deciding whether or not to buy a property. "
This even applies to a five year old example. Chances are that the surveyor will find something and you may be able to haggle on the purchase price and get your fee back that way. The Homebuyers has recently been updated and its very 21st Century. A good report.
(Please don't rely on my P.I. insurance as some sort of "defects insurance". That is not what it is there for. PM me if you would like further advice.)
When I was in the world of surveying houses I used to go to great lengths to explain that a survey is not intended to be a catalogue of minor defects. You'll never get a survey from me that says the kitchen drawer knobs are loose. You need to know what a surveyor sees and thinks, not what a potential purchasor sees.
As we've said before Homebuyers is the way to go in this case.
sorry to hijack the thread, but I'm in a similar situation..
I'm buying a 30s detached house which needs a good bit of tlc to get it up to scratch. there is damp in one corner at the front, a bit of cracking in a bay window and two small but slightly shabby extensions to the rear. I also plan to extend on the side full height subject to planning approval
There is also a repair for a leak supposedly due to broken guttering on the front rendering.
In this case would you recommend a homebuyers or full structural survey? I was of the opinion a full structural would be right, but when I asked a local surveyor he was guiding me down the homebuyer path, so am confused now!
I'm buying a 30s detached house which needs a good bit of tlc to get it up to scratch. there is damp in one corner at the front, a bit of cracking in a bay window and two small but slightly shabby extensions to the rear. I also plan to extend on the side full height subject to planning approval
There is also a repair for a leak supposedly due to broken guttering on the front rendering.
In this case would you recommend a homebuyers or full structural survey? I was of the opinion a full structural would be right, but when I asked a local surveyor he was guiding me down the homebuyer path, so am confused now!
Different context due to our property being over 130yrs old, BUT ... Home Report contained a survey from a reputable surveyors firm and indicated a couple of items of interest. Given that my view of HIPS is that its pointless I initiated a Scheme 2 survey from a different firm I've had dealings with before. Their survey threw up £6,500 worth of work that needed doing. We promptly negotiated this off the sale price (and the vendors didn't even fight that much).
Think who's commissioning the survey.
Dr Rick
Think who's commissioning the survey.
Dr Rick
the thing is the vendor has stated that he won't knock any more off the sale price if the survey comes back with anything major - its more a peace of mind thing for me.
I'll walk if anything major comes up (there is already a healthy reduction from asking price, but not enough to justify any major works I can't see if he wouldn't drop the price further
I'll walk if anything major comes up (there is already a healthy reduction from asking price, but not enough to justify any major works I can't see if he wouldn't drop the price further
The issues you describe are not unusual. I would advise against the homebuyers on 1930's places, although some will disagree.
You want a full building survey in my view. We don't call them structural surveys any more, but it's the same thing really. Make sure you talk to a Chartered Building Surveyor.
You want a full building survey in my view. We don't call them structural surveys any more, but it's the same thing really. Make sure you talk to a Chartered Building Surveyor.
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