Do I Need A Survey?

I am often asked about surveys. I’m a cash buyer, what do I need? .. I’m a first time buyer, who sorts this out for me?.. Do I need my own survey as well as the one the bank does?.. To be quite honest most of these are fairly straightforward questions with relatively straightforward answers - some being more subjective than others.

Cash Buyers

Firstly if you are a cash buyer you don’t necessarily have to have a survey but it would be advisable. I wouldn’t worry too much about having a ‘full structural survey’ as some tend to. If you ask the agent if they are aware of any issues with subsidence in that area it should give an indication of its structural integrity. A level 2 survey/homebuyers is probably appropriate for you. You are sinking a fair bit of your cash into this asset so it pays to have it looked at thoroughly if only to have something in writing which shows your investment to be a sound one. 

Understanding the report

What I would then say is try not to take the report too literally. The surveyor is being asked to mention every single defect within a 35-70 page document. It will make harrowing reading if you don’t apply some common sense and pragmatism to your interpretation of it. The same applies to first time buyers who decide to take one of these reports in addition to their basic mortgage valuation survey.

It is quite rare that a surveyor performing a level 2 report would comment on gas and electrics if the vendor hasn’t provided paperwork on either. This is a common misinterpretation as on the basis there are no documents and the surveyor is not qualified to test them, they are automatically graded a 3 (the worst) which can cause unnecessary alarm. Therefore if you are selling and the buyer is having a survey, leave gas and electrical certification in a handy and obvious place. If you are buying and see a big red number 3 against these items, try not to panic. They have probably not been checked and most reasonable vendors will get this done for you upon request.

Buying with a mortgage

If you are buying with a mortgage, the lender generally requests payment from you and then arranges a valuation survey for their own purposes (primarily to check the home is suitable for their lending). This will highlight any clear and obvious issues as well as providing a ‘valuation’ which will confirm if the price you are paying is right. If there is a structural issue the valuation will be £0 pending further reports and if there are issues with damp, timbers and the roof as examples, these will be highlighted for further inspection. In many cases it will tell you what a level 2/homebuyers will tell you but in 33-68 less pages! 

Some surveyors who have been paneled the work from the lender will offer buyers the opportunity to upgrade the basic mortgage valuation survey to a level 2/homebuyers and that is entirely your call. I can understand a decision to do that in an older house but for something built post 1980 I genuinely don't consider there to be much need to do so. A basic report plus visits from the necessary specialist tradesmen on any highlighted items should suffice. 

If there are issues it’s advisable to then get more than one quote on the area identified. Most agents can probably provide a few names who would assess these for you but it pays to do your own homework to select tradespeople with the right qualifications and credentials to quote accurately. It is very rare an estate agent/seller will take a renegotiation attempt seriously if the contractor doesn’t put something in writing or doesn’t have the relevant qualifications.