Residential Surveys
BSA Chesters Ltd - Chartered Building Surveyors
37 High Street, Long Crendon, Bucks HP18 9AL
Registered In England No: 3961563. VAT Registration No: 348 7032 46
Tel: 01844 208300 Fax: 01844 208447 or email us by clicking here
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BSA Chesters Ltd - Chartered Building Surveyors 37 High Street, Long Crendon, Bucks HP18 9AL Registered In England No: 3961563. VAT Registration No: 348 7032 46 Tel: 01844 208300 Fax: 01844 208447 or email us by clicking here
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Residential Surveys - the Future As from mid 2007 it will be illegal to market a
residential property without providing a “Home Information Pack” (HIP).
This will contain detailed information about the property – tenure,
covenants, results of searches and so forth. It was originally envisaged
that the HIP would also include a “Home Condition Report”, essentially a
survey of the property and a report prepared by a “Home Inspector”.
However the government has now made this part of the HIP voluntary and it
seems to us that very few vendors will want to provide purchasers with a
report upon the condition of their property when it goes on the market. Home Buyers Survey and Valuation This is a concise form of report used for any residential property of recent origins and of conventional construction. The report covers significant aspects of the property, a description of any serious defects, a market valuation and an insurance valuation. However it should not be confused with a Building Survey (see below). As far as defects are concerned, the intention is to put the client on warning that serious (not minor) defects exist and to make recommendations for further inspection by suitable persons or organisations. If the property was built prior to 1940 or is of an unusual form of construction, it is more appropriate to ask for a Building Survey. Fees for Home Buyers Reports and Valuations are from around £350 plus Value Added Tax. Building Survey Reports A full Building Survey Report provides a detailed report upon an older property. The surveyor should examine each element of the property in turn. He should give a description of that element, describe it’s condition, and give an opinion as to how or why certain defects have arisen. He should also give his view of how the problem can be put right. In fact we break this type of report into three parts and the client can chose between the following levels: Main Structure only - covering the roof, loadbearing walls, and floors, together with a check for dampness of all types, woodworm attack, and fungal decay of timber. Does not include electrical installations, plumbing and heating, or drains. The report also excludes any comment upon the interior fitting out of the property - ie plastering, ceilings, lightweight partitions, internal joinery etc. Main Structure and Services - covers the main loadbearing structure of the property as outlined above, followed by a visual inspection of the electrical installation, hot and cold plumbing installations, central heating and foul drains. As far as inspection of the services is concerned, no tests are applied at this stage. The intention is to assess the age of each installation, it’s apparent condition and whether there is any factor to put us on warning that there may be problems. If this appears to be the case, we usually recommend further inspection and testing by a specialist firm of installation surveyors, who have the necessary van load of equipment to do a thorough investigation. Full Building Survey - as the title suggests, this is the most comprehensive form of inspection and report. The scope of the inspection is increased to cover the interior fitting out of the property - ceilings, plastering, lightweight partitions, internal doors, kitchen units, staircases, skirting boards, fireplaces, sanitary ware and so forth. Externally, the condition of fences, driveways, paths and outbuildings is assessed. New House? Finally, what about a brand new house? Well, it’s not really appropriate or necessary to carry out any of the above forms of inspection as a newly built property has not settled down sufficiently for defects to become apparent. But we can carry out a "Completion Inspection" for you - effectively compiling a "Snagging List" of defects for the developers to rectify. Don’t believe you need this? One inspection of a new 4 bedroom detached house produced a snagging list of 132 items, several of which were serious, including the complete lack of a flue pipe through the roof space to serve the gas boiler! On another memorable occasion we flushed the WC upstairs, only to find the contents of the pan in the front entrance hall as the vertical soil pipe had been omitted from the boxing beside the front door.
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