Are searches needed??

bestyman

Hi all,
Just buying a RTB council house for £30,000. Mortgages on this construction type are a joke so raised cash with a bank loan .
Just got quote from solicitor for conveyancing and there are some "optional" extras.
Do I need local search, water and drainage search,enviromental search etc etc. Total extra for searches is £314.
What exactly are they searching for?
To be honest the house is a bargain at 30k and I cannot think of any reason why I would not buy it. The house is in the middle of a council estate not in a quiet suburb so plans to build, erm anything, nearby would be fine be me as it could only be an improvement.
I understand that if there are plans to demolish the house I get paid out market value, so again fine by me.
Please help
Paul

shykins

if u are having a mortgage of any type then the building society will insist on the searches being made.. u will need to check with the lender as its a bank loan whether that is the case with them

basically the searches will reveal what has happened in the area and what might happen.. u can actually do this yourself if u go to the local council.. the environmental search will reveal if there are mines etc or flood plains in the area (more than this but thats the basics).. again u could look this up yourself

bascially i would say that if your lender does not require them and u are completely happy u know the area then no u dont need them

Hope this helps

shykins

forgot to say i am buying a nother place myself to rent out and i am not bothering with the expense of searches... we dont need a mortgage and i am happy with the area

alared

If you don`t have a mortgage you don`t need a search.
It`s just a good excuse for your local authority to rip you off for about £120.
A search is only valid for about three months anyway.