Not conducting local searches

Dave2TheCardboardBox

Hi all. We've been told by our conveyancer we do not need to have local searches done as we're cash buyers. The house is a bog-standard 'estate' type place, built in 2003, so we can't envisage any issues.
Has anyone any experience of moving without having the searches? 

user1977

Yes. Risk is minimal, you can always do your own checks for planning applications etc on the council's website if you like. And/or you can get search insurance for the chance-in-a-million disastrous things which might have been revealed in a search.

olgadapolga

We were cash buyers and refused the local searches as we felt that there was no need. We checked the planning portal, etc., before making this decision. Also opted for the local searches indemnity, mainly to stop our solicitor carrying on about getting the searches.

knightstyle

Yes do your own checks and ask neighbours.  We didn't and relied on searches carried out by a company called 

CLS Property Insight Limited who missed a large development about to start within 300M of our new house!

They say we should have asked a local expert!  Now taking them to the property ombudsman.

davilown

We’re now cash buyers and won’t be doing searches either. The house is in the middle of lots of other houses, and there’s been talk of the adjacent fields (not my view) being built on for 30 years.
if they do they so be it.

Indigo_and_Violet

We were forced to do this as our local authority can't currently process searches (https://hackney.gov.uk/local-land-charges-search). We took out indemnity insurance because we have a mortgage (our lender agreed to this in lieu of searches). Planning-wise we couldn't check planning portal (it was also down!) but we are local and asked around and the area is already pretty built up. Our solicitor was initially very against it, especially on email, but once we got him on the phone he agreed it was a low-risk approach. 

AnotherJoe

Dave2TheCardboardBox said:

Hi all. We've been told by our conveyancer we do not need to have local searches done as we're cash buyers. The house is a bog-standard 'estate' type place, built in 2003, so we can't envisage any issues.
Has anyone any experience of moving without having the searches? 

My last 3 houses (well, one my mums) were all bought locally, no mortgage, no searches done they werent going to tell me anything I didnt know.

Somewhat surprisingly (to me) I didnt even get pushback from the solicitors.

btcp

We are buying without a local search due to a long time it takes to get it and wanting to get a stamp duty relief. We are not cash buyers and solicitor is getting us an indemnity policy. Seems normal these days.