When buying a property, a survey will be required by your lending Bank to make sure it is in a condition suitable to lend against - a property health check. The decided Finance provider/Bank will have a panel of surveyors that they will use and in most circumstances will be chosen on your behalf by them on a rota basis. It is important that you do not instruct a surveyor yourself unless instructed to do so by the Finance provider/Bank.

Below is a list of surveyors used by most Banks or Finance Brokers.

There are three types of survey. Some lenders require only a valuation, but it is prudent to consider obtaining a Homebuyer Survey, for the reasons below:-

MORTGAGE VALUATION

This should not be confused with an actual survey.  It is nothing more than advice from the surveyor to your lender about the value of the property.  It will give some limited information about the property and its general condition, but it will only usually highlight problems with the property that might affect its value or the security for the loan to be made by the lender.  It will not provide an "in depth" assessment of the structural condition of the property. Whilst you will generally be required by the lender to cover the cost of the valuation, bear in mind that the lender is the valuer's client, not you. This can potentially put you in a difficult position if, once you have bought your property, structural problems are discovered which were not mentioned in the valuation.

HOMEBUYER SURVEY AND VALUATION

This type of survey is more in-depth and will provide a valuation (and advice on the reinstatement cost for insurance purposes) and advice on identifiable defects, such as dampness, structural movement, the condition of the roof structure, windows/doors, rainwater goods etc. This type of survey is generally visual (i.e. non-invasive, floor boards will not be lifted and inaccessible areas will not be opened up). It will generally also provide advice on repairs and maintenance which will be required immediately or in the foreseeable future.   It is prudent to obtain a Homebuyer's Report, in our view, as the contract is then between you and the surveyor, which might be an advantage if you discover problems later which were identifiable at the time of the survey but not mentioned in the report.

STRUCTURAL SURVEY

This is the most comprehensive type of report. It can be an invasive survey, where floor boards are lifted to access hidden aspects of the structure and report accordingly.  The level of detail is higher than that of the Homebuyer's survey and the cost is generally more as a result.

A surveyor will be able to advise on costs and the type of valuation or survey report which is the most appropriate in your case.