FTB House Purchase Process

Zoyya

Hi Everyone,

I have been a silent reader on this website and now my turn to asks some question , finally

I am in the process of buying a new terraced house (needs modernisation) in Stoke On Trent (ST6) . My offer has been accepted (a few quids more than asking price) and after reading great tips & advises on this website, got a local solicitor for conveyancing. Solicitor yet to start on the searches. I am now looking to go with the next step of getting a survey and again after reading some great questions posted & answered here on this website , I have decided to search for a local surveyor and get a level 3 survey done on the property.

A few things on my circumstances

I am sole , first time , cash buyer and every naive on the whole process . I wont deny having sleepless night out of over thinking on stuffs as how I would manage all these things as a female with 0 experience  (did I mention no friends/family to relay on the advise) but I am just taking a leap of faith and using this website for all the research needed 

I would very much appreciate if you all could help me with your valuable knowledge in this journey of mine

1) Survey - Since I do not have any experience at all , I decided to go for level 3 survey (valuation included) even though I think it will cost me a few quids. Would this suffice for a peace of mind ?

2) I noticed some work done on the corner of the ceiling in one of the reception room , guessing it for radiator lines . I read that if asbestos ceiling are disturbed , it will be hazardous ? I am not yet sure if this house has abestos roofing but guessed it from my little research of the houses in the same area, builts after 1900. so does the L3 survey checks this for me or not ?

3) I only had one viewing of the property but did through visual checks of everything. Do you guys think it's worth going for a second viewing and check the electric switches,taps,toilet flush etc before the survey ?

Thank you all in advance

Zoyya

P.S I would also appreciate if anyone knows/can recommend a good local surveyor

user1977

When you say "roof" do you mean roof or ceiling?

timehastoldme

Is the chain completed? Is the house owner also buying a house? I wouldn't book a survey until the chain is settled.

We used Dunford Penrose and they were great.

Definitely go and view again, make sure you're happy before you spend too much money, do snagging checks, how many sockets, what's the water pressure like, is it different in the evenings to mornings. It's a lot of money, so worth triple checking.

RHemmings

Good luck. I'm in a similar situation to you, and have bookmarked this thread to also read the advice. 

Zoyya

@timehastoldme

Thank you your reply. Yes, it's mentioned chain free on the ad. mind you could you could share a list of something for snagging checks ? Already checked sockets - only one board (pair of sockets) in every room and 2 boards in the kitchen. I thought it is common as it's an old home. But bit concered though with the ceiling (in the pic below) .

Zoyya

RHemmings said:

Good luck. I'm in a similar situation to you, and have bookmarked this thread to also read the advice. 

Good luck to you too!

user1977

Zoyya said:

@timehastoldme

Thank you your reply. Yes, it's mentioned chain free on the ad. mind you could you could share a list of something for snagging checks ? Already checked sockets - only one board (pair of sockets) in every room and 2 boards in the kitchen. I thought it is common as it's an old home. But bit concered though with the roof (in the pic below) .

That's the ceiling, the roof is the thing on the top of the house which keeps the rain out.

It's a fairly messy-looking hole through the cornicing but I've never heard of that containing asbetos.

Artex (the textured coating you sometimes find on ceilings) used to contain (very small amounts of) asbestos. But it's not really something to get overly concerned about, just to be aware of it possibly being there if you're creating dust by e.g. drilling through it.

Zoyya

user1977 said:

Zoyya said:

@timehastoldme

Thank you your reply. Yes, it's mentioned chain free on the ad. mind you could you could share a list of something for snagging checks ? Already checked sockets - only one board (pair of sockets) in every room and 2 boards in the kitchen. I thought it is common as it's an old home. But bit concered though with the roof (in the pic below) .

That's the ceiling, the roof is the thing on the top of the house which keeps the rain out.

It's a fairly messy-looking hole through the cornicing but I've never heard of that containing asbetos.

Artex (the textured coating you sometimes find on ceilings) used to contain (very small amounts of) asbestos. But it's not really something to get overly concerned about, just to be aware of it possibly being there if you're creating dust by e.g. drilling through it.

Yes it is! The estate agent assured it's nothing to bother about. Just a bit of drilling done for the radiator pipes to pass through ! Both bedroom's ceiling (below) looked asbestos to me and it's a 1900 house. As I have read on other posts, can't expect a very perfect house but dont want to take risks on the major stuff .

user1977

Are those ceiling tiles asbestos? Or polystyrene? (which is a fire risk but not dangerous to remove)

Zoyya

@user1977 Overheard a person saying it looked like asbestos to him during the group viewing but I thought surveys will tell that going forward ? Do I need to check this with the estate agent if they know ?