How Long Will My Building Survey Take?
When you’re in the market for a new home, there are lots of things to consider. You’ve probably got a calendar full of appointments with estate agents, meetings with financial advisors and house viewings at various properties, not to mention scheduling in trying to pack up and clear out your current home.
Once you’ve found a property that you think could be ‘the one’, it’s essential that you factor in time for a survey to be carried out by a chartered surveyor, particularly if it’s a period property. They will check that the building is in good condition and search for any defects that could affect your decision to go ahead with the purchase- but how long will this process actually take?
Well, to help you make time for this crucial element of buying a house, we detail a day in the life of a chartered surveyor, explaining each element of a survey and approximately how long it should take:
This, of course, depends on how far your dream property is from your local surveyors’ office, and also depends on if they need to collect the keys from the agent beforehand. Each chartered surveyor firm will have a different approach to travel- some will be willing to travel long distances, whilst others may wish to stay local. Generally, the maximum time set aside for travel is around two hours in total.
The inspection itself generally takes between two and six hours. This all depends on the size and age of your chosen property, as well as the type of survey you’ve requested, for example, a RICS Homebuyer Report or a full Building Survey. The former will take less time as a Homebuyer Report is less in depth, whilst a Building Survey can be longer by at least a few hours but offers a far more detailed final report.
After the survey itself, the surveyors will hold a meeting with you to discuss what they’ve found and make you aware of any major issues with the property. It’s at this stage that you can begin to decide whether you wish to go ahead with the purchase, or perhaps consider negotiating the asking price.
So that everything is in writing, an important aspect of a chartered surveyor’s job is writing up their findings in a detailed report, which both buyers and estate agents can refer to to negotiate the price of the property. This can take up to a few hours, again depending on the type of survey, size and age of the property. A surveyor may also wish to carry out further research, for example, gathering information about the local area where the property is located. This could add another couple of hours to report writing.
As with any job, admin and secretarial work is an important element. Reports must be thoroughly proofread and checked over, and everything must be filed and stored securely for future reference. These tasks can extend the total time it takes to complete a survey by up to six hours, so don’t expect to get your report back the same day!
At Simon Levy, we pride ourselves on our prompt yet quality property surveying service. We appreciate how important it is to ensure the property you’re buying is right for you, but we also understand the time pressures that are involved. With Simon Levy, you can guarantee that you’ll receive a detailed Building Survey or Homebuyer Report swiftly and efficiently. For more information, get in touch with us today .
