Then make sure it doesn't suffer from

Get a RICS Homebuyers Report from Russell Brothers and make this important decision with all the facts.

Traditionally there have been two types of survey that might have been carried out.

The basic inspection that a building society would obtain when considering a mortgage, which is very limited being a valuation rather than a survey, and would only have regard to the structure in so far as it affected the value.  This is of little use to someone concerned about the condition of the building.

The full structural survey is a very detailed inspection which would normally require the house to be vacant, floorboards to be lifted, wall cavities opened and extensive testing of services to be done. This is often impractical where the house is occupied and is very time consuming and expensive.

However a relatively recent development is the Homebuyers Report produced by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors designed to fall between the two above, and provide the client with the maximum amount of useful information about the property at a reasonable cost.  Depending on the type of property such a survey might take about 2-3 hours on site, plus preparing the report, and provides a summary of type and condition of construction including.......

• roof, gutters, flashing, joinery, drainage and walls.

• roofspace, ceilings, walls, floors, joinery, and fittings.

• summary of services and report on common areas, access etc.

• visible evidence of damp, worm, rot, subsidence.

• recommendations of essential works and repairs.

• opinion of value, and appropriate amount for insurance.

SUBJECT TO DETAILED CONDITIONS WHICH TOGETHER WITH A COPY OF THE REPORT FORMAT WILL BE SUPPLIED IN ADVANCE SO THAT YOU CAN SEE EXACTLY WHAT YOU WILL BE GETTING BEFORE GOING AHEAD.

THE SURVEY WILL BE CARRIED OUT BY A QUALIFIED SURVEYOR, A MEMBER OF THE ROYAL INSTITUTION OF CHARTERED SURVEYORS, WITH OVER 25 YEARS OF EXPERIENCE INSPECTING PROPERTY IN THIS LOCALITY.

We recommend that should you be considering buying any property outside the builder's guarantee period you should have a proper inspection carried out to protect yourself.  Having to remedy rising damp or faulty roofs can run into thousands of pounds, and involve considerable disruption. Often it is the case that while there may not be one thing drastically wrong, the total cost of repairing numerous smaller items can be very substantial.

GET THE FULL FACTS BEFORE YOU BUY......

NOT ONLY WILL YOU KNOW MORE ABOUT THE HOUSE, YOU MAY FIND THAT ARMED WITH OUR REPORT YOU CAN NEGOTIATE A REDUCTION IN THE PRICE TO OFFSET THE REPAIRS NECESSARY......  YOU CAN OFTEN SAVE MORE THAN THE COST OF THE SURVEY.

DON'T BE LANDED WITH UNEXPECTED BILLS, GET A HOME BUYERS REPORT FOR LESS THAN IT COULD COST TO CARPET THE LOUNGE.

YOUR NEXT STEP

As cost depends so much on the age, size and construction of the property, contact our office 0n (028) 91812145 with details of the property and we will tell you how much the survey will cost, and confirm in writing together with a copy of the report format and our full terms to which all the information in this leaflet is subject.

If you want to proceed, you advise us accordingly, pay the deposit of £100 and we will arrange to inspect the property at the earliest opportunity.

PLEASE NOTE:  we cannot accept instructions to carry out a survey of a property which we are selling, or is outside our area (North Down, Ards Peninsula).