To survey or not to survey?

SallyDucati

I would say it a matter of how risk averse you are.  I didn't get one on my new house but it's a new build with a warranty.  If I had bought anything older I would have had a survey, on the basis that I would rather be confident that I know all aspects.  I am quite risk averse though!   

Competsoph

I had similar thoughts as yourself, buying on my own means £400 was a significant amount of money to fork out for someone to tell me what material the roof is made of..  That said, in the grand scheme of things, confidence in your purchase and reducing the risk of any serious issues arising that you were not fully aware of is worth it, to me. Also, I am not DIY orientated and although I couldn't see any damp/cracks signs of the place falling down, i'm not trained to look at those things either. Better safe than sorry for me. 
I also considered in within the normal costs of moving/buying a house so it doesn't feel like an extra outgoing, just something I expected and had budgeted for. 

Jamaicanmelaff

I spent £450 on a homebuyer's report which pointed out such useful things as, and I quote, "The bathroom is quite outdated and will need replacing at some point" and "the garden is very large and will require a great deal of upkeep." Thankfully, I have eyes, so I was already aware of these things. Indeed, the very large garden was one of the reasons I chose to put an offer in on the house.

On a serious note, my report didn't contain much that I wasn't already aware of, the usual arrse-covering 3s for electricity and gas as expected, plus some damaged render that I already knew about and had factored into my offer and some potential rot to the suspended timber floor, but the lack of anything unexpected in itself was extremely useful to me because it means I know that the money I had already budgeted into my offer for work to be done should cover everything I need to do (my valuation came back 10% higher than my offer and I'd set that money aside so I have a decent chunk to play with) and I don't need to worry that there's something major I hadn't noticed. Honestly, I'd rather spend a few hundred quid unnecessarily than not spend it and find that I missed something really costly that a surveyor would've picked up and saved me thousands.

Davesnave

You didn't start by mentioning the type and age of property, so I think  a full buildings survey would be appropriate. It's not just about 'peace of mind' but also a useful potential 'to do' list, though you won't necessarily have the same priorities.

And do remember that some folk price with the condition of the property in mind, so there isn't an automatic right to a price reduction, just because the survey says some things need investigation, or are not up to modern regs.

FreeBear

A 1950s build.. Things to look for.

 Have the windows been replaced with uPVC ?

Were checks made to see if a lintel was required on the outer leaf of brickwork ?

The tell tail sign is the brickwork above the window sagging and cracks appearing in the mortar joints - Cost to repair could be as little as £500 per window, or as much as £4k depending on the amount of work involved.

Elevated soil levels around the perimeter of the house - You've already spotted this one - It can lead to penetrating damp and rotting of the floorboards if it has a suspended timber floor. If it is a suspended floor, air bricks need to be checked to see if they are blocked. A solid concrete floor may be subject to sulphate attack - Could get very expensive to fix...

Whilst some of these checks can be done yourself, there are a number of other defects that a surveyor should be able to pick up on by looking for small clues - He won't be able to lift floorboards or coverings to check inside voids, so may well say "further investigation required". If the property is of non-standard construction, then a full survey would be essential in my opinion.

MightyMods

FreeBear said:

A 1950s build.. Things to look for.

 Have the windows been replaced with uPVC ?

Were checks made to see if a lintel was required on the outer leaf of brickwork ?

The tell tail sign is the brickwork above the window sagging and cracks appearing in the mortar joints - Cost to repair could be as little as £500 per window, or as much as £4k depending on the amount of work involved.

Elevated soil levels around the perimeter of the house - You've already spotted this one - It can lead to penetrating damp and rotting of the floorboards if it has a suspended timber floor. If it is a suspended floor, air bricks need to be checked to see if they are blocked. A solid concrete floor may be subject to sulphate attack - Could get very expensive to fix...

Whilst some of these checks can be done yourself, there are a number of other defects that a surveyor should be able to pick up on by looking for small clues - He won't be able to lift floorboards or coverings to check inside voids, so may well say "further investigation required". If the property is of non-standard construction, then a full survey would be essential in my opinion.

Thanks so much!

• All windows are uPVC and look good all around (no crack around or signs of sagging from what we could tell - again though, never done this before)
• It does have a suspended floor so slightly concerned as to the condition of the floor joists (I know somebody who has recently had to replace all floor joists under the house and looked like a MAJOR task) but would anything be mentioned about this on the survey or would they just default to "further investigation required" --- Would it be better to just go straight to a builder and ask them to check it out without a survey?
• Generally its a standard construction with no quirky differences so was looking at the home buyers report compared to the structural  

Jamaicanmelaff

MightyMods said:

FreeBear said:

A 1950s build.. Things to look for.

 Have the windows been replaced with uPVC ?

Were checks made to see if a lintel was required on the outer leaf of brickwork ?

The tell tail sign is the brickwork above the window sagging and cracks appearing in the mortar joints - Cost to repair could be as little as £500 per window, or as much as £4k depending on the amount of work involved.

Elevated soil levels around the perimeter of the house - You've already spotted this one - It can lead to penetrating damp and rotting of the floorboards if it has a suspended timber floor. If it is a suspended floor, air bricks need to be checked to see if they are blocked. A solid concrete floor may be subject to sulphate attack - Could get very expensive to fix...

Whilst some of these checks can be done yourself, there are a number of other defects that a surveyor should be able to pick up on by looking for small clues - He won't be able to lift floorboards or coverings to check inside voids, so may well say "further investigation required". If the property is of non-standard construction, then a full survey would be essential in my opinion.

Thanks so much!

• All windows are uPVC and look good all around (no crack around or signs of sagging from what we could tell - again though, never done this before)
• It does have a suspended floor so slightly concerned as to the condition of the floor joists (I know somebody who has recently had to replace all floor joists under the house and looked like a MAJOR task) but would anything be mentioned about this on the survey or would they just default to "further investigation required" --- Would it be better to just go straight to a builder and ask them to check it out without a survey?
• Generally its a standard construction with no quirky differences so was looking at the home buyers report compared to the structural  

Mine did mention timber floor joists, but just said that there was a bit of springing in a couple of places (I hadn't noticed this because I can barely stand upright without falling over so am never the steadiest on my feet, but my brother-in-law had so we had an idea there may be a problem there) so there could be an issue with the suspended timber floor and sub-floor ventilation so further investigation will be required. I called him to clarify and he said it was just one spot really and it could be nothing much but because he can't see it to be sure he had to mark it as a 3 in case all the floor joists need doing.

eidand

well, I spent 500 on a HomerBuyer RICS report, I couldn't see anything majorly wrong with the house when I viewed it ( twice ) and the report came back with literally nothing to worry about it. I guess my piece of mind is worth more than what I paid for the survey ...

[Deleted User]

We didn’t have a survey and our DPC line was covered by concrete. Cost of removing the concrete and wiping mould off wall and re-papering was a lot cheaper than a survey. 1930s bungalow that’s still standing and no mould returned...

Chilli6

I'd say it's going to be your house so listen to your gut, not the in-laws. It would be their risk to bear if it were their house but it isn't.
I've just got my report back and it's given me peace of mind I'm buying a decent house with no surprises. 
Earlier in the year I pulled out of another house as a problem was shown that meant the house was worth £10,000 less than I'd offered, cue vendors refusing to budge so I pulled out and it still hasn't resold yet. My dad was convinced it looked a solid house and nothing would come back so I feel I dodged a bullet there and was happy to lose £450 for it