Patterson Francis and Associates Blog

The RICS Home Buyer Report is the most popular type of survey that prospective property buyers have done in the UK. It is more detailed than the Condition Report but less so than a Building Survey, making it useful for the vast majority of properties. The information in the document is useful because it helps to protect people looking to purchase a property, ensuring there are no hidden gremlins in the structure that they need to worry about.

Each home buyer report will feature a market valuation based on the condition of the property and the current state of the marketplace. This is an unbiased figure using the evidence that is available to the surveyor at the time the document is written. The valuation helps to prevent people from paying over the odds and reduces the risk of sellers taking advantage.

All the details used to determine the valuation will be included in the report for buyers to peruse. Defects that affect the value will be listed in terms of the degree of urgency, i.e. how urgently they need to be repaired, with estimates for the repair costs included. For each defect that doesn’t require repairing immediate advice about maintenance will be offered to prevent the condition from worsening and becoming even more expensive to fix.

The information in the report may be used to reopen negotiations if you are still interested in making the purchase after finding out more about the condition of the property. It also means you won’t get caught out and find yourself buying a home only to find the repair and maintenance costs are much higher than you have anticipated. From a protection point of view it is essential to have the property surveyed before you buy.

If you need a home buyer report in Reading, Maidenhead or Slough, you can call on our team of locally based specialists to carry out the job. Our experienced surveyors will inspect properties closely, examining all visible parts for signs of problems. Reports are generally available quickly and are always in RICS format so the information is well presented and easy to make sense of. We follow their best practice guidelines too in order to ensure we deliver the highest standards of service.

Market research shows that an increasing number of first time buyers are choosing not to carry out full building surveys in an attempt to save money. According to a survey of more than 1,000 homebuyers carried out by Comres for RICS, one in five of those that opted out of a survey discovered faults at a later date. On average, the remedial work costs stand at around £5,750 with 17% of new owners spending around £12,000 to turn their properties into habitable homes.

Many buyers have come to rely on the mortgage valuation alone. A third of the sample of the buyers questioned by Comres had decided against commissioning a survey and of those, 20% were faced with faults, flaws and the expense of the repairs. Some buyers are reluctant to pay the fee for a full building survey yet when the problems with the property surface they can end up paying a much bigger price. The single payment for the survey tells you a lot about the condition of the house, but it can also help you negotiate on price.

When you buy a house the last thing you want is to be burdened with a barrage of bills for repairs, replacements and maintenance but statistics show that this is precisely what is happening. The failure to commission full surveys leads to owners with properties they cannot afford to fix and that nobody else wants to buy.

A building survey can prevent nasty surprises after you have settled into your new home. As it is a comprehensive inspection, you can be sure that the entire structure will be checked. When buying an older building, a survey is essential as there can be many concealed defects.

A survey includes an internal and external inspection of your roof, walls and foundation, floors, doors, windows and frames. All timber will be checked for woodworm and dry rot along with exterior features such as fences, boundaries, driveways and paths. Plumbing, drainage, gas and electrical systems are visually inspected but not tested. This along with environmental issues should be handled separately.

Upon completion you are issued with a complete structural assessment including details of any defects and cost-estimates. As committed chartered surveyors it is our role to ensure our clients are fully informed of the condition of properties before investing. We provide a range of specialist services including full surveys, mortgage valuations and homebuyer reports. If you need a building surveyor in Slough we can offer proficient services that will provide you with an accurate overview of the property you wish to buy.

Properties are valuable assets, whether they are for domestic, commercial or even public use. In order to retain and maximise the value, owners and occupiers need to be ready to do necessary maintenance and repairs. Without these the structure will deteriorate over time and lose value. It could even reach the point where it becomes uninhabitable if you neglect the upkeep.

Not everybody will be proactive with their maintenance. This can present problems for buyers and leave them with large bills for the work that needs to be done to get the property up to the required standard. Purchasing a property is a major investment, and this cost becomes even larger when you factor in the prices of repairs and upgrades. To ensure you know exactly how much you will need to invest, you should have a building survey carried out. This will give you a great deal of information to go on, including estimate costs for many different repairs.

Building surveys can be done on all kinds of properties and are the most in depth type of survey you can choose. It is particularly important to have one done if the property you are purchasing is old and already in a poor state of repair. Naturally these buildings tend to require the most work and can have many more hidden issues. It is wise to gather as much information about them as possible before you agree to complete the purchase.

It is also advisable to get a building survey done on listed properties and those in protected areas. In both of these cases there will be limitations to what you can do and the type of materials you can use. If you purchase one without a survey you can find the repair and maintenance costs are far higher than you expected because of the materials you need to use. You could even find that your whole plan is unfeasible if you don’t get the information you need early.

At Patterson Francis and Associates we have a team of surveyors to offer detailed inspections of properties and provide you with a detailed home buyer report in Slough and throughout the surrounding areas. We are committed to offering the very best services to each and every client, ensuring they know exactly what kind of investment they will need to make to get properties up to standard. To arrange a survey please call us today to arrange a consultation with a professional building surveyor.