Single Survey Scottish Home Report has a big mistake - What can I do?

theoretica

Floor area specifically includes conservatories according to my googling leading to these two documents:

https://www.rics.org/globalassets/rics-website/media/upholding-professional-standards/sector-standards/building-surveying/property-inspection-technical-guidance-for-the-completing-of-single-surveys-rics.pdf

https://calculator.bcis.co.uk/measuring_your_house/measuring.aspx

sonicboom34

fourmarks said:

sonicboom34 said:

ProDave said:

And how much did you pay compared to the valuation given in the purchase home report?

We paid over 10% above the valuation.

I'm pretty certain that we would not have offered quite as much given the actual size of the house. I felt 80 m2 was pretty small for what we wanted, but it was a compromise for the location and a really good garden

I must ask if you ever viewed the house before purchase? If you went round it, presumably 2 or 3 times at least, before buying it, then you knew exactly what you were getting irrespective of the accuracy of the written measurements. It's like saying the house was big enough (just) in reality but subsequently too small on paper.

Yeah, it was viewed twice. When I was looking for houses, I was looking at houses with a higher m2, and 80 m2 was smaller than I was hoping for, so I made an exception for this property. If I'd realised it was smaller than 80 m2 at the time, I would have probably thought it was too small and not viewed it, or offered less.

As a first time buyer, trying to figure out what properties are the ones we wanted to view, and looking at all the details of the houses, physical size, and price, were two factors that I was weighing up, along with many other factors. So the size was important to me, even if it does not appear as important to others.

We asked if we could visit a 3rd time to measure for carpets etc, though this was after the closing date on offers and the offer accepted, and they said no for a 3rd viewing.

I am saying, like you said, the house is big enough in reality, but too small on paper... If the new smaller size is going to reduce the value of the property then it would be an issue... which I now think it probably would not by much, and even if the size is wrong, the value might be correct.

sonicboom34

theoretica said:

Floor area specifically includes conservatories according to my googling leading to these two documents:

https://www.rics.org/globalassets/rics-website/media/upholding-professional-standards/sector-standards/building-surveying/property-inspection-technical-guidance-for-the-completing-of-single-surveys-rics.pdf

https://calculator.bcis.co.uk/measuring_your_house/measuring.aspx

I think that permanent structure conservatories would be included but not one like I have. This image is the closest I can find on Google of the type of conservatory it is. I think it's more a lean to greenhouse. The materials in the photo are the same with thinner metal and glass panels and a sliding door which doesn't lock... However, mine is bigger, positioned over the back door and has a raised concrete slab base. It's very likely been a DIY job by the previous owners.

Also, the Single Survey Home Report when discussing size mentions internal floor space, and lists all rooms, excluding this conservatory.

sonicboom34

diystarter7 said:

Hi

I was going to make a comment but IMO, the full report may indicate what the measures include.
Are you able to post a copy of the full report here minus identifiable details??

Sorry, but I find it hard to comprehend why you paid your money and now 18 months on feel you have been let down
as it is smaller than you expected or have I misunderstood you?

Thanks in advance

Hi,

I would prefer not to post up the full report, but on the first page or says:

Accommodation: Hallway, living room, 3 bedrooms, kitchen, bathroom

and

Gross internal floor area: 80 m2

It also says under "Conservatories / porches": There is a lightweight greenhouse-style lean-to conservatory. It is of an insubstantial construction type.

There are no other mentions of floor size or the conservatory in the home report.

The reason why I feel a bit letdown, is because the surveyor had a job to do, which included accurately measuring a house - something that I think would not necessarily be easy to do at a viewing. Now I know that, in the future, measuring a house to check if the home report is correct seems to be important. I assumed that the home report was going to be fairly accurate when it came to details.

Simply put, when I bought the house it was "80 m2", when in the future I sell the house, it is "72 m2". I feel that reduces it's value or perceived value, and this issue could have been avoided by a correct measurement.

user1977

The value is primarily determined by what the valuation is in the Home Report. Like I said, if that's what you want to challenge, you'll need evidence that the valuation was wrong. People really don't pay much attention to the floor area measurement in the HR.

sonicboom34

user1977 said:

The value is primarily determined by what the valuation is in the Home Report. Like I said, if that's what you want to challenge, you'll need evidence that the valuation was wrong. People really don't pay much attention to the floor area measurement in the HR.

I'm not going to challenge it. I don't think it's as big deal as I first thought. There's a lot of good things about the house, including garden size and huge detached wooden garage

And maybe you are right, that floor area isn't a factor that house buyers consider. I was looking at m2, council tax band, nearby parks, number of rooms, parking, EPC and bills, work needed done, etc etc. I went all in and got a nice spreadsheet to prove it.

ProDave

sonicboom34 said:

theoretica said:

Floor area specifically includes conservatories according to my googling leading to these two documents:

https://www.rics.org/globalassets/rics-website/media/upholding-professional-standards/sector-standards/building-surveying/property-inspection-technical-guidance-for-the-completing-of-single-surveys-rics.pdf

https://calculator.bcis.co.uk/measuring_your_house/measuring.aspx

I think that permanent structure conservatories would be included but not one like I have. This image is the closest I can find on Google of the type of conservatory it is. I think it's more a lean to greenhouse. The materials in the photo are the same with thinner metal and glass panels and a sliding door which doesn't lock... However, mine is bigger, positioned over the back door and has a raised concrete slab base. It's very likely been a DIY job by the previous owners.

Also, the Single Survey Home Report when discussing size mentions internal floor space, and lists all rooms, excluding this conservatory.

That's not a conservatory, it's a greenhouse.

daveyjp

Unless you know the basis of measurement for each type of survey both could be correct.

Gross external area, gross internal area, net external area net internal area are all a basis for measuring for various purposes and there is a full code on which basis to use for different purpose and what to include and exclude.

diystarter7

sonicboom34 said:

diystarter7 said:

Hi

I was going to make a comment but IMO, the full report may indicate what the measures include.
Are you able to post a copy of the full report here minus identifiable details??

Sorry, but I find it hard to comprehend why you paid your money and now 18 months on feel you have been let down
as it is smaller than you expected or have I misunderstood you?

Thanks in advance

Hi,

I would prefer not to post up the full report, but on the first page or says:

Accommodation: Hallway, living room, 3 bedrooms, kitchen, bathroom

and

Gross internal floor area: 80 m2

It also says under "Conservatories / porches": There is a lightweight greenhouse-style lean-to conservatory. It is of an insubstantial construction type.

There are no other mentions of floor size or the conservatory in the home report.

The reason why I feel a bit letdown, is because the surveyor had a job to do, which included accurately measuring a house - something that I think would not necessarily be easy to do at a viewing. Now I know that, in the future, measuring a house to check if the home report is correct seems to be important. I assumed that the home report was going to be fairly accurate when it came to details.

Simply put, when I bought the house it was "80 m2", when in the future I sell the house, it is "72 m2". I feel that reduces it's value or perceived value, and this issue could have been avoided by a correct measurement.

hi Op
Many thanks for that
I understand why you dont want to post the report in full. Therefore, I cannot make a meaningful comment/advice.

I now understand fully about the way you feel having red the bit you just posted.

NB: When we buy, we buy because we are happy at what we see and to us, it does not matter one bit if the lender/epc/surevors puts a higher or lower value on it as we often have plans/etc. We never pay full price but never say never.

What would have concerned me more than size is if I was advised that no one had rights over my land or we did and it was not the case. etc

If you are happy there, enjoy and be grateful you are happy, good people next door etc and please enjoy and let it go.



Good luck.

nicmyles

I'm glad you've come to the conclusion this probably isn't a big deal - when buying and selling one flat, I saw five different calculations for its size (one of which was clearly wrong, the others were much of a muchness). Ultimately, price/value is not determined by square footage alone, it's one of a range of factors. And if you saw the house and thought it was big enough compared to other properties you'd seen of similar size, then the value honestly shouldn't shift much if at all based on a slight calculation discrepancy.