Surveys
Surveys Explained
Buying, selling or extending your home a very exciting thing to do. It's also one of the biggest financial commitments you'll ever make. Property means big money, YOUR MONEY. It will pay for you to seek the best advice possible from professional experts who really know what they are talking about and have had years of experience.
You need to know as much as you can about the property before you buy it, so having a survey makes perfect sense and could save you thousands of pounds in costly repair bills. The only safe way of reaching an informed decision is to have a professional survey and valuation. Before you commit yourself legally to the purchase you can minimise any risk by instructing harper james.
So, why should I use harper james?
Here are some standard questions that should be considered before you commit.
- Is the agreed price reasonable and in line with the current market conditions?
- Is the agreed price reflective of the property's condition?
- Are there problems, defects or potential drawbacks to proceeding with this purchase?
- If so, what do I need to do about them?
- Should I buy this property?
Having your own survey is the simple and an effective way of avoiding costly surprises.
In some cases the harper james surveyors report may help you to renegotiate the price.
Doesn't my mortgage lender carry out a survey for me?
Well in short, no they don't.
Your mortgage lender is only concerned with mitigating their own risk, which primarily means establishing that the purchase price and the current market value agree.
It is still advisable to arrange your own survey conducted by your own surveyor. The Consumers' Association, Which Magazine and The Council of Mortgage Lenders all give the same advice. Also most lenders incorporate a warning notice at the bottom of the Mortgage Valuation Report urging borrowers to obtain their own detailed survey report before committing themselves to the purchase.
The mortgage valuation is for the benefit of your lender, not for you. It answers only the lender's questions relating to the security of the property for loan purposes. You cannot rely upon it to answer the questions that concern your personal interests.
A valuation is not a survey - it may not disclose significant defects.
What are the choices? Which survey should I choose?
We offer two main types of standard survey:
