Types
of Work Undertaken
Liam deals
with all kinds of Period and New Residential property from Flats to
Farms and from terraced houses to Manor Houses.
Liam carries
out Surveys and Inspections for House Purchasers, Existing Owners,
Builders and Developers.
Please feel
free to telephone for a chat to see whether Liam can help you and
for a quotation for any work you require.
Typical work carried out includes:
Acquisition
Advice
Indexed Photographic Inspection and Acquisition advice
Rebuilding Cost reinstatement Valuations
Building Surveys
Major Defects Reports
New build Assessments
Formal Valuations
Planning Advice
Boundary Advice and Party Wall Matters.
What type
of Survey or What type of Advice do I Need ?
Many people do not wish to read long explanations. In which case telephone
the Chartered Surveyor where you need a survey or advice and he or
she will be happy to discuss and explain the options to you. For those
that wish to read a general summary of the most common types of Survey
and Advice, read on.
This article
is for those that are unfamiliar with obtaining property surveys or
advice who would like a greater general understanding before they
telephone or contact the appropriate Chartered Surveyor closest to
the subject property. You will then be able to discuss the most appropriate
course of action and then make a fully considered decision.
Sometimes
the most appropriate kind of inspection can be different for different
people as well as for different properties.
Virtually
all Chartered Surveyors will adapt and carry out an individual building
inspection to suit your individual needs. A bespoke service or an
extra to a typical survey format should enable all the requirements
of a client to be addressed.
The most
common types of Advice sought by property purchasers are:
Mortgage Valuation
Home Buyer Survey and Valuation
Major Defects Report
Building Survey
Onsite Acquisition Advice
Photographic Inspection Advice
Buildings Replacement Insurance Valuation
Single Fault Assessment
Mortgage Valuation
Often confused
with a ‘survey’. A mortgage valuation has one purpose only
– to satisfy a ‘Lender’ that the house you want to
buy with a loan is a sufficiently valuable asset that can be sold
to repay the loan should you, the borrower, be unable to keep up repayments
in the future.
The Valuer’s
job is to take account of the condition of the building. There is
no obligation to carry out more than a superficial inspection.
Although you,
as purchaser, are owed a ‘duty of care’ and will pay all
costs of the ‘valuation’, the report is designed specifically
for the needs of a Lender. It is presented as a brief proforma that
provides you with little useful information as a prospective owner
in respect of condition and structure.
Homebuyer
Survey and Valuation
The Royal
Institution of Chartered Surveyors has designed the Homebuyer Survey
and Valuation report to provide a prospective purchaser with basic
information in a standardised format. It includes details of:
General condition
and form of construction.
Significant factors which might influence or affect value.
Market value.
Valuation for insurance.
Information
is provided in a simple, straightforward form, easy to read and understand.
It has recommendations for ‘action’ clearly stated.
Inspection
is limited to those parts of the building that can be reached safely
and easily using a 3m (10 ft) ladder. It includes inspection of boundaries,
outbuildings and overall visual inspection of services. It does not
include examination of inaccessible parts or testing of services.
Key defects
will be identified. It is important to appreciate that the surveyor
is not required to provide advice on repair or to comment in detail.
Although the
Homebuyer Report and Valuation is suitable for many dwellings built
after 1920, its simple format is not usually satisfactory for large
houses or those that are unusual by virtue of design or construction.
It is also not suitable for those that have been converted, extended,
altered significantly or are Listed Buildings.
Major
Defects Report
A major Defect
Report is similar in some respects to a building survey and a homebuyer
survey. The level of inspection is usually between the two or close
to the level of a building survey. However, the report itself is in
less detail than a full building survey and concentrates on those
more important and larger building issues.
A Major Defects
Report is often useful where a homebuyer report should not be carried
out due to the age or type of property or if the property is listed.
Building
Survey
Building surveys
involve more detailed inspection of buildings, and preparation of
a report that is designed to address the specific needs and interests
of the client.
The extent
of inspection and the method of reporting will be agreed when the
client instructs a surveyor to proceed and will be confirmed in the
Conditions of Engagement; including such matters as specialist reports
(e.g. focus on services; environmental aspects etc). Guidance and
detailed comment will be given on individual defects, cost of repair
and any other aspects of concern.
Although a
Building Survey is relevant for all types of modern buildings, it
is particularly useful and informative for older structures, ‘Listed
Buildings’, and those which have been extended, or are used commercially;
for flats and other premises with leasehold title or as a preliminary
to preparation of a Schedule of Condition.
Onsite
Acquisition Advice
This is where
a surveyor may well spend a day at the property, with the client meeting
the surveyor at the property in the afternoon. A tour of all the most
important considerations when purchasing the property can be explained
to the client onsite and in front of the item needing consideration.
This can be
clearer and easier to understand fully for most persons who like to
understand about the property they intend to purchase or have a second
opinion. The level of inspection is typically at the same level as
a building survey, however not necessarily all matters are discussed
onsite if there is nothing specific to report.
This is a
verbal report with no written record. The costs of this service are
usually very competitive compared to a similar inspection where one
is reporting in writing, due to extra administration involved in producing
a written report.
Photographic
Inspection Advice
This is similar
to normal Acquisition Advice, however, the client may or may not meet
the surveyor at the property at the end of the inspection. The surveyor
would take a photograph of everything that he or she would report
on in a typical survey and provide the client with a disc of photographs.
A written index is provided if required with a brief explanation of
the feature and / or issue concerned.
The presence
of a photograph enables a telephone conversation to take place to
clarify the surveyor’s thoughts about the property, including
with special reference to specific photographs.
A surveyor
knows what sections are important to look at, whereas most clients
are less experienced and are often constrained by having to look around
a property with a vendor or agent. The Surveyor can be as long as
it takes and is expected to be nosey!
This service
does not usually come with a formal written report, although this
can be supplied by arrangement and has obviously become very popular
over the last few years with the advent of digital photography. The
last few inspections carried out by the author have typically been
in excess of 250 photographs. With the old 35 mm cameras we used to
inspect a property and take 36 shots for the whole of most properties!
Buildings
Replacement Insurance Valuation
This is “as
it says on the tin”, namely the cost of rebuilding a property
irrespective of the condition the building or site may be left in
following a disaster. It is not the same as the market price of the
property or the cost of building the property.
At the time
of carrying out most building and advice inspections herein described
it is typical for the surveyor to provide a building replacement valuation
that will be required for a purchaser’s buildings insurance.
This should
be updated regularly depending upon the terms and conditions of the
policy provider. Many policies are typically indexed linked and assume
that the Buildings Replacement Valuation is acceptable as a basis
for insurance for 5 years. After 5 years any difference results in
inadequate insurance cover.
Insurance
companies do not usually pay up the pro rata differential of even
a small claim and any claimant would need to find this amount. Different
policies have different terms and conditions and it is recommended
that these be read carefully.
Some insurance
brokers and companies sometimes inappropriately try to indicate to
their clients the Building Costs of properties. In their small print
you will usually find that they are not insured and that it is the
responsibility of the owner to be certain that the figure they provide
is correct.
It is the
owner’s duty to make sure that the property is adequately insured.
If there is a mortgage on the property it is often a legal obligation
to keep this valuation updated. There are also legal ramifications
where adjoining properties may be affected.
A Buildings
Replacement Valuation on its own is not usually expensive, depending
upon a number of factors. It is invariably incorporated into the typical
services provided by a Chartered Surveyor subject to client agreement,
whether an Acquisition inspection is required or more detailed building
inspection is undertaken.
Single
Fault Assessment
A single fault
assessment is an option where there is one particular fault or problem
with a property. This may or may not be before or after a purchase
and is most often required when a property has been in the same occupation
for many years.
The fault
or problem is analysed and the cause, or probable cause, identified.
A proposed course of action is then suggested in order to address
the problem itself.
Sometimes
it is appropriate for a letter analysis or report to be prepared for
a possible insurance claim.
And Finally
…
There are
a number of other types of building assessment possible. To select
the most appropriate service, we are of the opinion that the most
appropriate course of action is to speak to the Chartered Surveyor
who knows the area well and can discuss your individual requirements.
If the Chartered
Surveyors in the location required are onsite at the time of your
call, as can often be the case, if you leave a telephone or e mail
message they will contact you as soon as they are able.
Please remember
that Chartered Surveyors are often onsite and therefore uncontactable
even with mobile phones. If you telephone and get an answerphone,
please leave a message, or e mail the surveyor, and he or she really
will call you back as soon as is possible.
