Reply to: Building survey

[Yorkie62]

Sounds like my old place : I dread to think what a full survey would come back with on that with all the alterations I did without building regs :

That's 50% off the asking price

[Big Blue Plymouth]

The last place I bought only had a homebuyers report. I wonder, but am not sure, if a full structural survey would have picked up removal of the wall that originally separated the kitchen and dining room. I had no idea that had been removed until I pulled the kitchen floor up some years later. It wasn't a supporting wall so I wasn't concerned.

The people buying my house very quickly found out about it (maybe due to their surveyor) and I had to pay for some indemnity insurance in order for the sale to go through because no planning permission/building controls check had been sought. It was only a couple of hundred quid but I was livid at having to pay for a previous owner's actions.

Sounds like my old place : I dread to think what a full survey would come back with on that with all the alterations I did without building regs :

[ladymuck]

The last place I bought only had a homebuyers report. I wonder, but am not sure, if a full structural survey would have picked up removal of the wall that originally separated the kitchen and dining room. I had no idea that had been removed until I pulled the kitchen floor up some years later. It wasn't a supporting wall so I wasn't concerned.

The people buying my house very quickly found out about it (maybe due to their surveyor) and I had to pay for some indemnity insurance in order for the sale to go through because no planning permission/building controls check had been sought. It was only a couple of hundred quid but I was livid at having to pay for a previous owner's actions.

[Big Blue Plymouth]

I'm umming and ahing about whether or not to get a homebuyers report or full structural.

I'm assuming that major defects like subsidence etc will be picked up by both and that's all I'm really interested in. The full structural will come back reading like a copy of War and Peace with loads of minor issues and things that need further investigation which will involve hiring more specialists . I've been there before with a previous property & the vendor got so pissed he put it back on the market. Don't want a repeat of that...

[Yorkie62]

If buying an older property also worth checking/getting insurance for chancel repair. If at any time the property was owned by the church you could be liable for repairs to the local parish church under chancel law ( I think its called). When I bought my current house I took out chancel insurance as I knew it had been previously owned by the local parish church, clue was in the house name "Glebe Farm". Glebe meaning a piece of land serving as part of a clergyman's benefice and providing income. Chancel insurance isn't expensive and is a one off payment for life time cover.

Chancel repair liabilities in England and Wales - The National Archives

[alreadypacked]

Also worth checking on the previous use.
Saw a really nice at a good price, found out it was used as an illegal bed-sit/hostel. The extra bathrooms had been removed so it could be sold. But when we checked under the floor boards every joist had been butchered to install pipes. Some pipes were still there just capped-off.

A lot of time and money to fix, or you could play Russian roulette every time you filled the bath.

[WTFH]

Cavity walls? Luxury!

A bit like foundations, I've heard of them, but don't have any on the main part of the house.

[OwlHoot]

And you thought you'd ask us for advice? Congratulations, your problems have only just begun...

Not a bit

Whatever the question there's bound to be someone here who knows the answer (or an answer), and some of us claim to be experts on practically everything!

[vwdan]

I may be biased but I would always go with a Chartered Surveyor becauseA) they have to prove they know what they are talking about, B) if there is a problem you have some recourse to a "higher level".
Not always the cheapest but as a house is likely to be your largest expenditure, is now the time to skimp?

Here is the link to search for a local Surveyor

Agree 100% with this, though do take it all with a reasonable pinch of salt because they can only check things they can see/get to etc.

And you thought you'd ask us for advice? Congratulations, your problems have only just begun...

Should I tell him about that time we brought a 30's build that needed a bit of TLC and wound up with a £30k+ back to brick renovation?

Best thing I ever did, though! My advice to the OP is get comfortable with DIY - when we completed on that house I'd never ever put up a shelf*. Last week I poured the foundations for the extension I'm DIY building....

Look out for corroded wall ties

Cavity walls? Luxury!

*Though I do admit I wasn't exactly completely useless, as I was a car/bike guy and had turned a lot of spanners. But never any house/building stuff.

[Mordac]

I think it's a 1930s house. I expect to find issues but considering its the biggest purchase I'm going to make I'd like to know everything before purchasing

And you thought you'd ask us for advice? Congratulations, your problems have only just begun...

[Scruff]

I have always gone for a full detailed Survey. The last one cost me £1200. Roughly 50-60 pages and very thorough.

Quick exit...

[Yorkie62]

Can you post a photograph of the house in question and we'll all offer our opinion FoC. Sorted.

[Halo Jones]

I may be biased but I would always go with a Chartered Surveyor becauseA) they have to prove they know what they are talking about, B) if there is a problem you have some recourse to a "higher level".
Not always the cheapest but as a house is likely to be your largest expenditure, is now the time to skimp?

Here is the link to search for a local Surveyor

[WTFH]

I think it's a 1930s house. I expect to find issues but considering its the biggest purchase I'm going to make I'd like to know everything before purchasing

A wedding ring (or a job lot of them if you're Brillo) is the biggest purchase you'll ever make.

As for knowing everything about the house, that can be dangerous. What you really should want to know is the important stuff - are cracks on internal plaster just cracks, or are they a reflection of external ones?
Are there any big trees nearby that could affect the foundations?
Is there damp in the corners of rooms?
Has the central heating been maintained?

How many imperfections can you live with?

[Zigenare]

Look out for corroded wall ties

There is a caveat to this.

Depending on the age of the property they won't find wall ties using a metal detector, our wall ties are made of slate! The surveyor appointed by the Halifax didn't take this into consideration and marked "Evidence of Wall Tie failure" on his report. We paid for our own surveyor's report and the chap was brilliant. Needless to say his report was accepted without qualms by the lender.