Surveys can knock £1,800 off the price of a home

Surveys can knock £1,800 off the price of a home

17:30 PM, 23rd February 2011, About 14 years ago

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Property investors have a cavalier attitude to home valuations that often unnecessarily leads them with a bill for putting right expensive problems.

Eight out of 10 people buying a home fail to order a survey that often reveals defects that cost an average £1,800 to repair, according to the country’s leading surveying firm e.surv.

Many home buyers rely on a mortgage lender’s valuation to highlight problems, when the bank or building society is looking at the property’s value not condition.

A professional inspection is more thorough – with the surveyor lifting carpets, moving furniture and checking the loft for structural problems, damp or rotten timbers.

If these problems are spotted prior to buying a home, the property investor and seller can renegotiate the price to take account of the costs of remedial work.

Don’t rely on valuation for mortgage borrowing

If the deal is completed before discovering the faults, buyers have to fund the cost of repairs.

Richard Sexton, of e.surv, said homebuyers were not having a survey carried out before they bought a house due to a number of factors.

“The main one is a common misunderstanding that the lender’s mortgage valuation will tell you all you need. Buyers should appreciate that this report is not for your benefit but to help the lender assess how much to lend.

“Additionally, groups who are in a position to recommend a survey, such as agents and brokers may neglect to do so.

“Some still choose to ignore advice because they can’t see past the initial cost of the survey.

“ They look at the price tag and hope they’ll be fine without it. To them this is just another expense in an already expensive process, but it’s an investment on the most important purchase you make.”

Survey prices often depend on property value – costs start from around £199.


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