buying flat

anndam

Is it neccessary to do a home buyers survey at the cost of £300 plus when buying a flat, which has a Managment Team and you pay a yearly charge for the external structure and upkeep of the building.:(

princeofpounds

It's never necessary, but it's often a very good idea. Freehold management is a guarantee of precisely nothing.

People can and do buy property without surveys, and perhaps there is less risk where another legal entity is responsible for the fabric of the building, but if there are problems it is good to be forewarned so that the big bill for leaseholders isn't such a surprise when it arrives.

If you are having issues funding a £300 survey then I would question how you can finance the house!

_Andy_

You're about to spend tens of hundreds of thousands of pounds on a property and you're doubting paying £300+ for peace of mind? Strange attitude!

Fire_Fox

anndam wrote: »

Is it neccessary to do a home buyers survey at the cost of £300 plus when buying a flat, which has a Managment Team and you pay a yearly charge for the external structure and upkeep of the building.:(

Probably not if it is still under an NHBC guarantee (less than ten years old), otherwise how else will you know if the property is well maintained? With older properties full structural surveys usually pay for themselves as the results allow you to renegotiate the price down. Make sure that you ask permission for your surveyor to access any loft space and lift carpeting if necessary.

Annual service charges usually DO NOT cover major works such as underpinning or roof overhaul or lift replacement, these costs can run to thousands or occasionally tens of thousands per flat. Do not rely on managing agents to plan such repairs well ahead: we had our fire escape repaired after a section collapsed injuring a resident, the levy was £1100 per unit (15 flats) at very short notice. :eek:

cardsharps

Fire_Fox wrote: »

Annual service charges usually DO NOT cover major works such as underpinning or roof overhaul or lift replacement, :eek:

Sometimes they do i.e. if there is a sinking fund.

john_white

On my first flat I had a survey and it found a couple of minor things, like the extractor in the kitchen not working, vendor put them right. Worth £300, nope.

As you say, the block is managed and that should be OK.

Fast forward a few years buy another flat and this time no survey as whenever I spoke to a surveyor they said a full structual survey would be very expensive and it would have gaps.

Fast forward 18 months and am landed with a £12000 bill for major works. Maybe should have got that survey.

Also consider though, if your block is part of an estate then a survey is worthless as there's nothing to say your flat is fine but the other block is draining the funds.