Building survey-waste of money?

wanderer

If I am getting a full building survey done, will the surveyor not test the electrics, gas, plumbing, heating etc. The house is 60 years old. So I am concerned about this. Do I have to get a specialist to do these after I've paid the surveyor. What is your openion about homebuyers survey

clavelle_2

In my opinion a homebuyers is not necessarily any better than valuation, this of course is dependant on the surveyor. As noted on an earlier post by myself I had a valuation done & then changed and had a homebuyers. These were done by 2 different companies. The valuation had the house in major need of repair whilst the homebuyer said everything was perfect.

I was informed that if done through a mortgage company they are often tied to the wording they can use. This means that they may have to either make the house sound worse than it really is or better.

I took no chances and got a third independant survey done (over £1100 in all) to find that the house needed some repair work and also was advised to call in a damp specialist as some of the beams appears to have excessive moisture.

All in all whatever you go for if possible get your own survey done (some mortgage companies will still except their findings its just the surveyor will need to reword it for the company but will at least tell you the truth.

Most of this advice I got from my own (and last) surveyor who's was on the panel for my mortgage company anyhow (and it would have cost me less).

Rebecca22

I don't know anything about full building surveys but a homebuyers survey is very basic - it will check the structure of the building, but that is all - it is the lender's way of ensuring that if they have to take possession of the house it will be worth enough to pay them what they are owed. On a house that age I definitely wouldn't rely on just a homebuyers survey!

notakid

Hello
I was an estate agent for 20 years so I speak from experience.
The surveyor will not test the elec, gas. timber and damp, roof or plumbing He will advise you to get the above services tested by independant tradesman if he thinks there may be a problem. He will point out if he thinks the roof is dodgy or the house is damp/ electicals out of date and will also comment if he feels there is any problems with the structual aspects of the property.

An independent survey can be the bane of the estate agents life so it is a good thing for the customer. Think about the cost your house! The extra this costs is only a small price to pay for piece of mind to make sure you are not buying a pig in a poke.

A basic survey is only for the benefit of the mortgage company. You pay for it but it only done for them to make sure that if you default on your payments they can sell it on at no loss to their company. However if you are having a 95% or above mortgage the reports do tend to be quite detailed but the more money you have as a desposit the less risk to the mortgage company and the less detailed your survey.

A independant survey is only as good as your surveyor you employ. Some, we used to groan when they collected the keys as we knew they were detailed and would notice something. Others we know we wouldn't have a problem.

I told all my friends to have an independant survey, it can save you money in the long run and also help you knock money off when work is found.
The thing to remember is you don't want any nasty surprises once you move in.

Its always worth getting the Timber and damp and electical reports done straight away, esp for a house of 60 years if the owners have no guartuees of work,

wanderer

thanks to notakidd, Rebecca22 and clavelle for their good advice. I was thinking of getting a homebuyers survey done independently on top of the basic mortgage survey. and also get specialists to check the electrics and plumbing. Do you think this would be better than getting an independent building survey done? especially since they dont test any of these things........Please help

notakid

What % mortage are you having?
Did the house seem well cared for when you viewed and how long have the current owners lived there?
In birmingham the estate agents had contacts of Damp companies who would do a survey for you for free, it was better to use these as if you rang them direct the purchaser was charged. But it might be different now/ where you live. Also keep in mind the regs change all the time regarding electical works, I would say most of us live in houses where the electics are out of date. Really, you just want to make sure that they are not dangerous or cause you major decoration works after the improvements have been carried out.
Also if the house has central heating is it checked yearly does the vendor have proof?
The worst type of house in my opinion is the DIY fiend, it looks good but everything is cobbled together, a house that looks like it needs abit of tender loving care you normally can see the problems before buying.

As I said before if you have having a high % mortgage the survey should be quite througher but if you are putting a bit of money up front be careful!

Doozergirl

I hate homebuyers reports. They never tell you anything except to get specialists, so why not just go for the specialists? We get a structural engineer to look at the structure (obviously!), and call in a plumber, electrician and a damp and timber specialtist. This may seem an inconvenience to the vendor, but you only end up calling these people in on the back of the homebuyers report. They never tell you anything anything is 'clear' (as they have to cover their backs), only that you need to get specialists to confirm. And they will definately do this if it is an older house.

Sometimes a good builder can point out faults in most areas.

wanderer

The house looks well maintained. vendor says the C. heating was serviced annually. the wiring was changed in1980. I am not going to rely on the mortgage surveyors report. neither am I happy with homebuyers survey or the structural survey from the feedback Ive got from all of you . Ideally I would like to get all the specialists in like Doozergirl suggested. But it is impossible to get all this organised as I live quite far.