Surveyor, help!

cellardoor

Just had a call from the surveyor who has turned up to look at the house we want to buy.

I’m not confident they’re going to do a thorough job. First of all he asked me if there was anything in particular I wanted him to look at. Eh, does he want me to tell him how to do his job? Then he rephrased it to anything in particular we had concerns about that we would want him to pay special attention to.

So I mentioned I wondered if the chimney needed repointing and whether the dorma windows would need new felt any time soon and he said he didn’t have ladders that went that high but he would do his best. !!!!!!? What are we paying for? Sounds like a drive by survey. Is he gonna sit there and tick the boxes from the car?

Anyway, am I wrong to expect more? We paid a little more for a better survey. I believe it was £500 and it was called the Homebuy report. This surveyor has been sent by the mortgage company. First time I've bought a house. I'm inclined to call him back but don't know where I stand.

princessamy86

Unfortunately I think Homebuyers only covers the surveyor to look at what he can access easily. For a full structural they go over the whole place with a fine toothcomb but unless you have specific reason to believe there are structural problems it can be a lot of money to shell out. He was probably just asking if there was anything in particular you were worried about, then he can double check it and set your mind at rest. Wait till you get the report back, check through it carefully and book another viewing to look at the points raised in the report. If you feel he hasn't done a thorough enough job then you are entitled to follow that up with a complaint to his employers or the RICS (if he is a member!). Not sure which other avenues you have to complain but I'm sure there are plenty! It's a bit wait and see I'm afraid, it's not the most detailed of surveys but it's plenty adequate for most people's needs, good luck!

cellardoor

Ok, May be I just have to wait and see then. From the little I've just read, a lot of people seem to say their not worth the paper their printed on.

If I knew the guy was just gonna look at the dorma windows from a far, see it has a felt roof and report felt MIGHT need replacing, I might not of bothered. Isn't that just stating the obvious?

poppysarah

Yes it seems like it's just stating the obvious. But thats how surveyors reports work. "Get an electrical expert, get a gas expert, get a damp expert, get an asbestos expert" etc

princessamy86

Yeah it's rubbish, all about covering their own backs normally! Everything will be "in my opinion....this and that may need doing" better to have that though than walk in to find walls falling down, they do at least check there is nothing which needs further expert help on the structural stuff

russ21282

We were considering not getting the survey done as we had been told it's not worth it. But then after speaking to few people it seems it does have it's benefits. The main ones being, if there is something wrong with the house, the surveyors will explain things to you, how bad it is, does it need doing right away, does it need maintenance etc. It also acts as an insurance policy if they miss something big.

With the valuation report, it's basically just a few ticked boxes and a yes or no for the lender, with no opportunity to follow anything up if there is something wrong.

This is only info i have found out from talking to others, but worth the extra £180 in the grand scheme of things.

Richard_Webster

I think OP is being alarmist.

Why shouldn't the surveyor ask if there are any particualr concerns and things you want checked?

Yes, there are limitations on a Homebuyer's report, but it still gives a lot of useful information. There are heath & safety issues about clambering around on roofs and climbing high ladders and there are also issues about sellers not wanting carpets and floorboards removed to see what is beneath, so there are practical limitations.

Doozergirl

Richard_Webster wrote: »

Why shouldn't the surveyor ask if there are any particualr concerns and things you want checked?

I agree. I think it's a bit of an extra service personally and a credit to the surveyor for asking if the buyer has any concerns. I can't imagine what % of surveyors would ask that of a buyer, but I'll bet it's very low. I doubt many of them even have personal contact with the buyer if the survey is commissioned via the lender.

A homebuyers report is a general going over, it's not detailed but by actually asking if you have concerns, he's likely to look closer at those for you. If you want a full and comprehensive buildings survey then that is what you have to pay for.

I'd be grateful for a surveyor like that.

miker8510

I work as an administrator for a surveying company. Most lenders require us to contact the applicant and ask if they have any special requirements they want the surveyor to look at for the Homebuyer Report. It is really just a courtesy call and it also lets you know that things are moving ahead. I would appreciate service like that rather then be left in the dark.

gratefulforhelp_2

You are free to get your own survey done separately, of course, that will cost. He should be able to view dormer windows with binoculars, regardless of how long his ladders are. It's true there is a lot of back-covering goes on, and you will prob be advised to get various different reports. Whether you do or not will depend on how much you think your vendor will put up with before you are at risk of jeopardising the purchase, though in the current market, it's probably quite a lot. You may be disappointed when you see the report as there is a lot of copy and paste goes on. Why not check if he is affiliated to RICS Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors? Imagine he is if employed by mortgage company. Good luck!

JonathanA

We've had 2 homebuyer surveys done on houses we've purchased. The first surveyor didn't phone us or ask us any questions, but was extremely thorough in his report - he clearly did have long ladders, took lots of photographs which he included in his report and was exceptionally thorough.

The second time, we used a different surveyor to do the homebuyer report. He did phone us in advance, asked us if we had any concerns - to which we also referenced the roof and the chimney. The report he sent through was littered with mistakes - he told us the party wall in the loft was a fire hazard as it was incomplete (it isn't - but there is an internal wall that is in the loft that is incomplete), so I think he stuck his head up in the loft and only had a quick look. He also stated the chimney was dangerous and needed rebuilding. We had two separate tradesmen round for quotes to do this after we moved in, and both said there was nothing wrong with the chimney, it had been repointed recently (which we later confirmed with a neighbour). I think that some of the report had been cut and pasted from another report. When I queried the party wall in the loft with the surveyor, he was adamant he had been looking at the correct wall, but to this day, I cannot see any gaps in brickwork between us and next door, but can on the internal wall.

I couldn't be bothered to pursue it further, we had enough to do after moving house, but I would never, ever use that surveyor or his company again. I would go back to the first, thorough one though.

Can anyone recommend a good independent surveyor to you?