Building Surveys

The legal situation when purchasing a house is that the onus is on the purchasers to satisfy themselves regarding the condition and suitability of the property.

Although a pre-purchase survey may seem to be yet another cost at this time, it is usually money well spent. Hopefully, the results of the survey will not stop the purchase of the house but it must always be preferable to be fully aware of any shortcomings of the property before taking the decision to proceed with the purchase. Sometimes, defects which become apparent during a survey will provide some scope for re-negotiation of the purchase price.

The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, the Consumers Association Which? Magazine and the Council of Mortgage Lenders recommend that, even if you are already paying for a Mortgage Valuation Report, "it is advisable and prudent to arrange a survey by your own surveyor". The reason for this is that the Mortgage Valuation Survey is prepared for the lender – not for you, the borrower. It answers the lender’s questions concerning the appropriate security for your loan – that is to say, it confirms that they would be able to recoup their loan if you were to default on the mortgage payments. You cannot rely upon it to answer the questions which concern your personal interests.

Beyond the limitations of the Mortgage Valuation Survey, the two standard forms of survey available are the Homebuyer Survey and the Building Survey. For most relatively modern, standard properties in generally reasonable condition, the Homebuyer Survey is adequate to advise upon the essential matters of concern and the reasonableness of the value of the property. The Building Survey is a more thorough and detailed bespoke survey, which, as a result, is also a little more expensive.

At Smith Marston LLP, we are able to provide a full independent surveying service and can also provide an architectural service for extensions, barn conversions and alterations to houses. Philip also has a particular specialism in Building Conservation works

Why choose Smith Marston?

We think that there are various reasons why you should choose Smith Marston to carry out a survey regarding the most expensive purchase you will probably make in your life:

  • All surveys are only carried out by experienced Chartered Building Surveyors - we do not have unqualified staff undertaking the survey with the completed report then 'signed-off' by a qualified surveyor.

  • We provide a thorough and comprehensive report complete with photographs of the most important matters.

  • Clearly, we will report significant concerns about the house to you.  However, the experience of our Surveyors is such that all have the confidence to reassure you where there may be matters which appear to be alarming but which are, in fact, not of a serious nature.  We realise that you are having the survey because you want to buy the house and the purpose of the survey is not to put you off buying the house of your dreams even though you do need to be alerted to significant matters of concern.

  • We can provide a verbal report the same day if time is of the essence.

  • Following your receipt of the report, we are more than willing to discuss any matters of concern or aspects which require any clarification

And, after all, this is not a situation to cut corners and it is certainly not always the best option to go for the cheapest option when arranging a survey.  It is very easy for a Surveyor with to provide a damning report which would spoil the sale - and remove any liability for the surveyor at the same time.  We do not do this - we provide honest, reliable reports to provide you, as the potential purchaser, with the appropriate information to make an informed decision about the purchase and possibly to renegotiate the purchase price. Because we insist upon the highest quality of surveying and reporting, we are not always the cheapest but, when buying a home for hundreds of thousands of pounds, we would suggest that it may well be false economy to simply opt for the cheapest survey option.

If you would like to discuss any matters at all regarding surveys, please do not hesitate to call.

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