There are numerous reasons for wishing to engage the services of a qualified surveyor, often the most common being to provide independent impartial advice to the purchaser of a property to establish its condition and as to whether you are paying a reasonable price, reflecting the outcome of an inspection and the prevailing market conditions, the level of reporting service offered being described in more detail below. You should have a survey carried out on a property you intend to buy, and carefully consider its results before entering into a contract to purchase. Depending upon the seriousness of any defects and the cost of necessary repair work, you could try to re-negotiate the purchase price to reflect the likely cost of the repairs in your offer or decide not to proceed with the purchase at all.

All too often purchasers rely on their Mortgage Valuation Report, which is provided for their Building Society/Bank to assess the security offered buy the dwelling against the level of their loan. A property can have defects that are critical to a prospective buyer, but are not of concern to a mortgage lender and therefore often don't appear in a valuation report.

Alternatively you may require the services of a surveyor because you wish a plan to be prepared as to the extent of your property for a number of reasons, Land Registration, possible boundary dispute, submission of planning permission, party wall awards or an expert witness report.

Surveys of residential property are designed to give you the information you need to make an informed and sensible offer on your future home. Both the Consumers' Association, publishers of which? Magazine and The Council of Mortgage Lenders advise you to arrange a survey before buying a property - don't just rely on a valuation. As a firm of Chartered Survey surveyors our surveyors are members of The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) and are professionals whose academic qualifications and training have been approved by the RICS and follow a strict code of ethical conduct and professional standards.

The cost will primarily depend on what type of survey you require and prices will differ according to the type and value of the property, its size, age and complexity of the survey. If a valuation is being arranged on your behalf, perhaps by your building society or bank, they may charge and administrative fee for this service. You are entitled to know the amount of the fee being paid to the surveyor and the amount being retained by the lender and as a consequence may wish to instruct a surveyor independently.

Which survey should I choose?

Market Valuation Report (Level 1)

A brief report primarily concerned in providing advice on value, taking into account the property's condition and prevailing market conditions, recommended where you are uncertain about value, or you think you may be paying too much for a property. Alternatively this type of report can be provided for a variety of other uses, namely; mortgage loan security, probate, taxation, matrimonial and expert witness reports. A Market Valuation report is not a Survey of the property and you should not rely on this type of report as a comprehensive statement of the property's condition.

RICS Homebuyer Survey and Valuation (Level 2)

Devised by the RICS to provide you with an overall opinion of the general condition of the property, considered suitable for traditional and modern properties and will advise upon any defects considered urgent or significant and any matters requiring further investigation, that are likely to have an affect on value, whilst reporting in a concise and user friendly format. The report will also comment on matters that should be brought to the attention of you legal advisors. The surveyor will comment on all parts of a property that are readily accessible but are not obliged to inspect areas difficult to access. They won’t lift carpets, shift furniture, use a ladder to inspect the exterior of the roof, or move items stored in the loft. Similarly, since most surveyors are not experts in electrics or plumbing, they won’t test services such as wiring and water supply. However we will comment upon their condition where visible and if necessary, recommendations will be given that an expert examination is carried out. The report should allow the purchaser to make an informed judgement as to whether to proceed with the purchase.

Building Survey (Level 3)

Often referred to as a Structural Survey, this a comprehensive report primarily concerned with the structure of a dwelling, being particularly suitable for older, individual or significantly altered or extended properties. Leonards do not currently provide this level of service, but would be only too happy to recommend local practitioners or structural engineers to undertake and provide this type of report.

For more information, or a no obligation market appraisal for letting or to arrange an appointment to view any of the properties available please call our Holderness Road office on (01482) 375212, or email:- info@leonards-hull.co.uk