William Young - Chartered surveyor

Why do I need my own Survey?

The best way to reach an informed decision on such an important investment as a home,isto have a professional survey and valuation of the property that interests you.  Before you decide to go ahead and commit yourself legally, you can minimise the risks by asking a qualified surveyor to answer these questions for you:

• Is the agreed price reasonable?
• Are there drawbacks I don’t know about?
• If so, what do I need to do about them?

Commissioning your own survey is the simple, economical way to avoid unpleasant – and perhaps costly – surprises after moving in.  In some cases, the surveyor’s report may enable you to renegotiate the price.

I already have a Mortgage Valuation report… often this is now carried out as a ‘desktop’ exercise, and the property is not even seen by the Surveyor/Valuer.

Even if you are seeking a mortgage – and may be paying for a Mortgage Valuation report – it is therefore even more advisable and prudent to arrange a survey by your own surveyor.  The Consumers’ Association ‘Which’ Magazine and the Council of Mortgage Lenders both give this advice.

The reason is simple: the Mortgage Valuation report is prepared for the Lender – not for you, the borrower.
It answers only the lender questions concerning the appropriate security for your loan. 
You cannot rely on it to answer the questions which concern your personal interests

What else should I know about the Homebuyer Service?

The Service – the inspection, the report and the valuation – are all explained in detail in the accompanying Description of the Homebuyer Service, but the highlights are:

• This is an economy package.  Because of the practical limits on the type of property and on the scope of its coverage, the Homebuyer Survey is priced mid-range – more expensive than a Mortgage Valuation, but less than an Building Survey.
  
  

The surveyor’s main objective in providing the Service is to assist the prospective homebuyer to:

• Make a reasoned and informed judgement on whether or not to proceed with the purchase

• Assess whether or not the property is a reasonable purchase at the agreed price

• Be clear what decisions and actions should be taken before contracts are exchanged

The surveyor also gives his or her professional opinion on the particular features of the property which affect its present value and may affect its future resale.

The concise report covers the building inside and outside, the services and the site.  It focuses on the defects and other problems which, in the judgement of the surveyor, are urgent or significant, but it also covers:

• The general condition and particular features of the property

• Particular points which should be referred to the Client’s legal advisers

• Other relevant considerations concerning, for example, safety, the location, the environment, or perhaps insurance

Matters which are judged to be not urgent or not significant are in general not included in the report, but the surveyor will mention matters judged to be both helpful and constructive.