Survey help

sukavi2011

Please help. I think I misunderstood the survey side of buying. I was told survey had all been sorted with a drive by survey with mortgage provider, so I relaxed and did no more, especially as the property seems the ideal home with nothing to do except move in . Now i have agreed to vendors property info and fixtures and fittings, although there are a couple of things I enquired on. I now realise I should have arranged my own survey of the property and am panicking. Is it too late to ask for a survey now? I couldnt afford the full £1k plus survey but fell i should do something. I feel so dumb now but really thought it was all covered.

Thrugelmir

Did the lender really only perform a drive by survey?

david1951

sukavi2011 wrote: »

Please help. I think I misunderstood the survey side of buying. I was told survey had all been sorted with a drive by survey with mortgage provider, so I relaxed and did no more, especially as the property seems the ideal home with nothing to do except move in . Now i have agreed to vendors property info and fixtures and fittings, although there are a couple of things I enquired on. I now realise I should have arranged my own survey of the property and am panicking. Is it too late to ask for a survey now? I couldnt afford the full £1k plus survey but fell i should do something. I feel so dumb now but really thought it was all covered.

It's not too late to do anything. How old is the house? Give the details to a local surveyor and see what they recommend.

The estate agent/vendor may be a little annoyed but it's not a major issue...unless you've set the exchange date for tomorrow or something?

hazyjo

What they did was a valuation, but it's often grouped into the three types of survey you can have (valuation being the lowest, then homebuyer's, then full structural).

You should be able to get the latter for around £500+ (yes, it may be up to a grand although that is on the more expensive side) depending on what you might want them to check out, and the homebuyer's you may get for £350+-ish.

Some have them, some don't. I always do (at least the middle one).

It won't check things like electrics/gas/boiler and will prob say you should get your own independent bod to check them out (should you wish).

Jx

sukavi2011

Thrugel, yes when I spoke to EA/Mort advisor or solicitor in sept I was told lender did 'a drive by' when I asked should I sort survey. I was surprised at time.
David not sure how old the house is. Its not new build, I think its around 1970s. extensively modernised, Rewired and new kitchen in last 3 years, looks immac. This is first time sold n bought so very green on processes etc. Now i've seen an article on drive bys and worried sick. Ive emailed my solicitor and ringing them tomorrow. I have no exchange date nor signed contract only confirmed F/F, LR boundaries, and asked a couple questions on prop info.
I can understand them being a bit annoyed and I dont think anything will come back wrong but its peace of mind.

sukavi2011

Jo, thanks, things that i was thinking was for electrics, gas boiler (only because these have been done in last 3 yr and they havent said they if have certs, ive asked the question) , not sure what else they check, damp ,roof?
When i ring solicitor tomorrow they may say all has been done, but I havent physically arranged a survey and don't know if they or lender would have done, esp if grouped with drive by but i've not had any feedback.

Cakeguts

How much does a really expensive survey cost compared to the amount that you are paying for the house? You have to consider that you might be £1000 for a survey now that could save you several £1000s after you buy the house if something serious is found.

G_M

Your solicitor is a lawyer, not a surveyor. Because he is not an expert in this area, he will simply advise you cautiously to have a survey done, so that you do not later blame him for advising you not to.

Whether you actually need a survey depends on

* the age of the property
* it's general condition
* your atitude to risk
* your confidence in your own ability to spot problems
* whether you have specific questions ("can I knock this wall down?")
* whether any recent works in the property have proper Building Regulatoons certificates or were done without, perhaps by a cowboy

ChasingtheWelshdream

sukavi2011 wrote: »

I havent physically arranged a survey and don't know if they or lender would have done, esp if grouped with drive by but i've not had any feedback.

The valuation would be the only thing the lender would be interested in. A homebuyers or buildings survey are your choice. You lender wouldn't have arranged this, unless you agreed at the time, in addition to their valuation, and paid the extra money.

Nor would the lender see your survey, so no feedback = no survey. You would have had the report sent direct to you.

As Jo says, boilers, electrics etc. are not covered. If the boiler has been serviced, there should be a certificate. If you are concerned, I would get this checked. Without meaning to sound negative, we took our vendor's claim that he had 'lost' the certificate at his word, and opted to service the boiler ourselves. One week after moving in, the whole system was condemned.

However, that is an extreme example and with hindsight, the boiler was ancient and the fact there were free standing electric heaters in each room should have raised alarm bells. In our new house, the boiler hasn't been serviced for 2 years, but we have seen the whole system working, and is an excellent condition, so we are inclined to let a servicing gap go.

It's never too late for anything, but check the survey will give you the peace of mind you want, before shelling out the money.

ChasingtheWelshdream

sukavi2011 wrote: »

Rewired ... in last 3 years,

This would have certificates.

Please don't worry sick! It's not the end of the world at all, you are not about to exchange, so it's not holding up the chain.

We took a month before deciding whether to have a full survey on our new house. In the end we played safe, but it actually didn't tell us anything we didn't already know. Full structural survey was £480 + VAT.

As has been said, it's your level of risk - advisable, but not compulsory.

sukavi2011

GM, I know solicitor is not a surveyor but no one actually advised me to get a survey done,, when i asked about it and not just to them, the answer came back that lender had done drive by so i had nothing to do or worry about
The property is in good condition, I have asked my Sol if certs are avail for gas/elect & works been done, waiting for reply. There didnt appear anything visibly wrong at viewing, it looked immaculate, a lot better than my present home.