How to Choose a Surveyor for Your Home
Buying a new home is a ‘big deal’ and once you’ve found a property that you like, it is vital to find a surveyor who can assess the condition of the property for you. A proper survey (not just a mortgage valuation) will highlight any issues, give you a clear idea of what you are taking on and save you money and stress in the long term. But finding the right surveyor for you and your property is key. Here’s what you need to consider:
1. Find Someone Local
It sounds obvious as they will need to visit the property but, having a local surveyor with local knowledge is really important. Building materials, types, and structural defects vary from place to place and a surveyor really gets to know their ‘patch’. They will know what to look out for and be able to predict any future problems. They also possess knowledge about unique location-specific issues such as flooding, mining activity, subsidence, radon, and other hazards. And, your local surveyor will also know intimately the subtle variations that location can have on market desirability and value, even from one end of a street to the other. When searching for a surveyor, check to see which locations they cover and survey regularly.
2. Proven Reputation
Always choose an RICS regulated Chartered Surveyor. Surveyors that are regulated by the RICS are highly trained, adhere to strict codes of conduct, high professional standards and are subject to continuous professional development and scrutiny.
Consider other people’s reviews and feedback about services (our latest Google Reviews are pictured). This will help you gauge the level of service, competency and reliability offered and help you to decide if they are the right surveyor for you. Ask your estate agent and / or solicitor for recommendations and look out for client lists (often published on surveyors’ websites) to see which other reputable organisations use their services.
3. Experience
Choose a surveyor with extensive knowledge of inspecting a wide range of different property types but with specific knowledge of your type of property. Local knowledge is again advantageous here, and a time-served surveyor will have ‘been there, seen that’ before. Quite often our surveyors will have inspected the same house a number of times over the years!
Non-standard buildings (eg pre-fabricated concrete) or listed buildings require specialist knowledge, so if that applies to your property, always inquire whether the surveyor has experience of your particular needs.
4. Value for Money
It is important to shop around a bit to compare prices but remember that not all surveys are equal. You definitely pay for what you get in this life and residential surveys are no different. For more information on this, please see one of our previous blogs, ‘Good Work Isn’t Cheap, Cheap Work Isn’t Good’ here: https://bit.ly/3nCrwEN. We pride ourselves at Jones Battye that our surveys are written in ‘plain English’ and it is important that our clients understand everything in their report and have the opportunity to ask questions.
The price of a survey will vary according to the size, type and value of the property, the level of survey that you choose, and its location.
5. Range of Services
Does the surveyor offer the type of survey or service that you need? Most surveyors offer a range of survey products differing in depth and detail, and it is important to make sure that the type or level of survey offered meets your requirements. The level of survey required will depend upon the type and age of property and what you intend to do with it. For example, an older property or one to which you are intending to make a lot of structural changes, will require a higher level of survey than a newer home constructed from standard materials.
To help you decide, you should be offered advice and help to choose the right survey for your needs. Different surveyors will also have different time frames for reporting their findings to you. It is worth enquiring about this to obtain a realistic expectation. Remember however that it takes time to obtain access, inspect a property properly and write a thorough report. Good surveyors are very aware how important it is to report to their client as quickly as possible, but time frames will vary, particularly at busy times.
6. Are they Approachable?
Last but not least, follow your instincts. The initial contact with a surveying firm, either through their website, social media, marketing, email or telephone, is important. Do you feel that staff are approachable and listening to your individual requirements? Can you ask questions and talk to a ‘real’ person? Will the actual surveyor carrying out the work be available to you? All these less definable qualities are important in finding the best surveyor for you, one that you feel happy with and would recommend to others in the future.
At Jones Battye, Chartered Surveyors, we pride ourselves on providing quality surveying services for local people and places. We mostly cover the South Wales Valleys, Cardiff and the Vale, Newport and Monmouthshire, Swansea and the Brecon Beacons from our offices in Aberdare and Cardiff. To see what we can do for you please call Kay on 01685 378894 or 02920 625433 or email us at enquires@jonesbattye.com
