Why do I need a Survey?

The most important purchase most people make is buying their own home. The price of a survey may just seem like an extra expense that you can avoid at a time when everything seems to be costing twice as much as you expected, but when you are spending tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of pounds on something, surely it makes sense to get a surveyor to tell you whether you are getting your perfect home - or a financial disaster.

You might already have had a Mortgage Valuation (click to see an example), but this is prepared for the lender, not you. The purpose of a mortgage valuation is to tell the lender whether or not the property provides good security for the loan they are making to you. The surveyor only carries out a very brief inspection of the property. It will only refer to repairs and problems which have a significant effect on value. It doesn't give you the information that you need to decide whether or not the property is the right one for you.

Having a survey, such as a RICS HomeBuyer Report, before you make a legal commitment to purchase will tell you what is wrong with the house so that you can get estimates for work and budget accordingly, perhaps even re-negotiate the price so that it reflects the cost of essential repairs. It will also tell you whether or not you are paying a fair price for the property and highlight any possible problems on resale.

"Thank you for being so efficient in both the inspection and for the paperwork. I would definitely recommend you."