House surveyor

[DanTVR]

Hi all,

We have started the daunting process of buying our first home! It needs a fair bit of work which will include a rewire, some pluming work and and refitting throughout. We will also potentially be taking on an extension to add another bedroom so we will spending a not inconsiderable amount of money. If you are going to do it do it properly I guess! We want to make sure its all good before we jump in, so we want a decent survey carried out. I don't think we are going to bother with an invasive? sructural survey for over a grand, so just a standard RICS survey should suffice. Can anyone recommend a prompt and reliable surveyor that covers the Guildford area?

Many thanks!

[nick_mcuk]

DanTVR said:

Hi all,

We have started the daunting process of buying our first home! It needs a fair bit of work which will include a rewire, some pluming work and and refitting throughout. We will also potentially be taking on an extension to add another bedroom so we will spending a not inconsiderable amount of money. If you are going to do it do it properly I guess! We want to make sure its all good before we jump in, so we want a decent survey carried out. I don't think we are going to bother with an invasive? sructural survey for over a grand, so just a standard RICS survey should suffice. Can anyone recommend a prompt and reliable surveyor that covers the Guildford area?

Many thanks!

We are currently selling 2 properties and buying another in Hindhead. I made sure I was there when the survey/home-buyers survey was done and quite frankly its a big waste of money. If I were you I would save your money find a friend who is a good trust worthy builder to check over the place, this is what I did a couple of weeks back on the place we are buying.

Your mortgage lender will have a survey done which will be adequate remember they are only going to look at stuff nothing that you cant already do....if there are cracks in the walls or massive patches of mould on walls then be worried you dont need to be an expert to see that stuff.


Dont waste your money on a home buyers survey though...spend it on something more worth while. I will give you one example of the tosh they spout...my house was built in 1974...the expert who came to do the homebuyers survey went in the loft and made notes that the roof beams didnt meet current building regulations....well like DUUUUHHHHHH the house was built in 1974 not 2013 so its not likely to be built to todays standards. Completely pointless bks!

[DanTVR]

Cheers guys. I have heard horror stories about surveyors, and my parents had a similar experience with their last house with the bloke going on about the floor support being unsuitable wood, and it wasnt a timber frame house!

I would still like to get someone to look over it as there are a couple of cracks I want an experienced eye to see, I like to think if someone would reccommend thier surveyor after laying out a few hundred quid then they must have some idea what they are looking at!

Thanks again.

[ratboiler]

I talk from experiance here, we had a full survey of the current home, they came back with a load of tosh, the outside of the house was clad in boarding. The surveyor noted that the boarding was rotting in certain places (all this in the written report). So we decided to take it off and tile the front of the house. The contractor turned up and found the boarding to be, as I remember white asbestos (like concrete boards)no wood in sight. And would not remove it, 2.5k later it was removed with all the correct apporovals for the disposure of it. We then went after the surveyor for the 2.5k to which they offered £500, took it to the ombudsman and they said take the £500 so you know what we think of the obudsman service.
Get a good builder in and trust what he tells you.

[DanTVR]

Hmm.. These stories are very common considering all the supposed regulations that govern surveying! Anyone know a good builder in the Guildford area?!

[nick_mcuk]

ratboiler said:

I talk from experiance here, we had a full survey of the current home, they came back with a load of tosh, the outside of the house was clad in boarding. The surveyor noted that the boarding was rotting in certain places (all this in the written report). So we decided to take it off and tile the front of the house. The contractor turned up and found the boarding to be, as I remember white asbestos (like concrete boards)no wood in sight. And would not remove it, 2.5k later it was removed with all the correct apporovals for the disposure of it. We then went after the surveyor for the 2.5k to which they offered £500, took it to the ombudsman and they said take the £500 so you know what we think of the obudsman service.
Get a good builder in and trust what he tells you.

Exactly this....we had a damp and timber report done on the house we are buying and if you read it you would think the house was festering pile of rotten damp with mushrooms and damp ever where!(not the case I might add)

He also made some bks about floos being fixed if he had taken the time to look he would have seen the floor boards are different because there used to be a door way which has now been bricked up!!

As said find yourself a good trustworthy builder who can give you a real view...I am lucky as one of my best mates is a builder and he said the house is fine and if we didnt buy it he would!

[Furry Exocet]

anonymous said:

[redacted]

I had to use this company a few years ago and they were very good.