Helping you choose the right survey
Why do you need an RICS Home Survey?
Because forewarned is forearmed. Choosing the right survey will help highlight any serious problems and advise you of the specific risks before you commit to the process of buying or selling a property.
RICS has three different levels of survey (outlined overleaf). These can only be conducted by an RICS qualified surveyor. Reliable and cost-effective, these reports carry the full weight of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors – the industry’s most respected authority on surveying.
Buying a home
It’s important to remember that your mortgage lender’s valuation report is not a survey. It merely tells your lender whether or not the property is reasonable security for your loan. An RICS survey will tell you the actual condition of the property. That’s vital information that can be invaluable during price negotiations, and will also help you avoid expensive surprises after you’ve moved in. There is an option for an RICS Home Survey – Level 2 (with valuation) which, as the name suggests, also includes a valuation as a standard part of the service for your own purposes.
Selling a home
An RICS survey can be an aid to selling your home. It will show you any problems that may delay your sale or cause price reductions later in the process.
Staying at home
A survey of the current condition of your home will warn you of defects and help you avoid escalating repair and maintenance costs in the future.
