Home Buyers Report OR Building / Structural Survey?

JeffMason

Hi All,

Just buying first house and trying to decide whether to get the cheaper 'Home Buyers Report' or 'Building / Structural Survey'.

It's a victorian house and in good condition with lots of refurbishments happened in last few years, but I'm still worried that any old building should have the full survey done. Am I worrying too much though?

I'd also be interested in opinions on when in the buying process to have the survey done. 

And lastly, if anyone has recommendations of surveyors in South London? I want to get a few quotes as I'm not sure what a reasonable price for these things is, and I'm trying to be as careful with money as possible. 

Thank you!

Hannimal

With a house of that vintage I would definitely have a full structural survey. I had one on the place I am buying now and while most here will recommend that if you are buying a fairly new house you don't need one, I got such important information through the survey that if I ever buy another house I will definitely have a full survey instructed. I think this is a no-brainer with older houses. 

I would instruct the survey as soon as all parties in chain are proceedable. 

greatcrested

JeffMason said:

Hi All,
It's a victorian house and in good condition with lots of refurbishments happened in last few years, but I'm still worried that any old building should have the full survey done. Am I worrying too much though?

Do you mean the decor is "in good condition" with a nice shiny kitchen and the walls are freshly painted?

Or do you mean it is in structurally in good condition ith Building Regulations certification for relevant work etc?

NibblyPig

Absolutely get the full one done, whatever it costs it will save you money.
Either it'll show major issues, which means you don't accidentally buy a house that will cost thousands of pounds to fix.
Or it'll show everything is completely fine (which is incredibly unlikely for an old house), giving you peace of mind.
Or most likely it will show some issues, and some potential issues. They will likely be absolutely normal for a property of that type.

However they will still save you a fortune in the future because you will know what to keep an eye on. For example, it might say something like "the guttering is showing signs of a minor leaking", which is not a big problem, it's an easy fix, but unless you spotted it you might find that over the course of a year, water runs down the side of your house and penetrates inside and ruins the paint/plaster or worse. Lots of bits and bobs like that. If it's anything like mine it's INCREDIBLY thorough.

Just don't panic when it comes back with 25 pages of warnings and doom. They tend to make properties sound like they're going to collapse any second when in reality some issues are covering their !!!!!!, others are worst case (e.g. a wall crack appears literally from nothing more than a bad paint job, they might say the wall needs to be drilled into and investigated for subsidence or something scary as hell), and others are just routine.

JeffMason

greatcrested said:

JeffMason said:

Hi All,
It's a victorian house and in good condition with lots of refurbishments happened in last few years, but I'm still worried that any old building should have the full survey done. Am I worrying too much though?

Do you mean the decor is "in good condition" with a nice shiny kitchen and the walls are freshly painted?

Or do you mean it is in structurally in good condition ith Building Regulations certification for relevant work etc?

I mean the shiny kitchen version. And the vendors have told me about work that was done within last 18 months; new windows, roof and gutters checked and repaired where needed. I have no certificates though - can I ask for these sorts of things?

JeffMason

Hannimal said:

With a house of that vintage I would definitely have a full structural survey. I had one on the place I am buying now and while most here will recommend that if you are buying a fairly new house you don't need one, I got such important information through the survey that if I ever buy another house I will definitely have a full survey instructed. I think this is a no-brainer with older houses. 

I would instruct the survey as soon as all parties in chain are proceedable. 

And who tells me that all parties in the chain are proceedable? Who do I ask to find that out? My solicitor? Their EA? I'm a first time buyer so the chain ends with me. 

FreeBear

JeffMason said: And the vendors have told me about work that was done within last 18 months; new windows, roof and gutters checked and repaired where needed. I have no certificates though - can I ask for these sorts of things?

The windows should have been registered via FENSA or similar organisation, so the local council should have a record. FENSA records can also be searched online.

The danger with replacement windows on older properties is that lintels were not checked - In many properties, the original wooden frames provided structural support for the brickwork above. Quite a few fitters will rip out the old frames and just whack a uPVC window in despite the trade bodies recommending that lintels are checked.

That said, many Victorian properties have a big chunk of stone over the windows to support the brickwork, so additional lintel work is not required. If you have a full structural survey done, the surveyor should pick up on issues such as lintels.