Questions to ask in Level 3 Building Survey

Smiiglett91

Hi All
We have had our offer accepted on an 18th century cottage (I believe it was built in late 1700's) and we are about to instruct a Level 3 Building survey with Camsure Homes LTD. 
I was just wondering if anyone could help me with some of the specifics I need to ask the surveyor to look at when he visits the property, there are the obvious, damp, rot, and roof structure (as it does look a little wibbly wobbly already) I'm guessing also maybe floor boards? 
Some things that might be handy to know
- The property is on a main road,
- The property has solar panels on the roof (owned by vendors)
- The property has three inglenook fireplaces
- The property is showing it has had cavity wall insulation (on one side) 


Any help would be greatly appreciated to help me get the most out of my money with the survey. Thank you in advance

AdrianC

You're buying a pre-packaged product from a large corporate outfit. They won't tailor it to your questions. The survey will tick the boxes the survey ticks, and the report will be laid out in their standard report.

If you want something more specific - and for an 18th century property, you should - then don't buy a tick-box standard product survey. Get a specialist to have a proper look. Find a heritage builder in the area, and pay them to have a proper go-over. You may still need a separate valuation for your lender, and it might all cost a bit more than the standardised tick-box, but you'll get a much better idea of what condition the property is really in.

greatcrested

All those matters will be included in their survey - no need to ask specifically.

The only time you'd need to ask specific questions might be if you have specific plans the surveyor would not know about eg

"I want to knock down this internal wall - is it load bearing? Can I do it?" or similar.