Buying a house

[endoftether82]

Just wondering if there are any searches etc that we should do as standard when buying a property? I'm talking personally, not through solicitors, surveyors etc.

We put an offer in a house after seeing it once because we loved it and had by that stage seen loads of places. We know the area but are now freaking out because our offer has been accepted ( way under asking price) and we're wondering why no one else offered. Concerned that there may be something drastic we've missed!

You can check police website for local crime rates and see what crimes have been comitted I. The area. Also environment agency, flooding, other hazards etc... I might think of some more..

Also. Exciting, good luck!

You can check house sold prices on Rightmove too. That way you can gauge your offer in comparison to the rest of the street...

Thank you lilyblue!

You can get reports off the Internet which talk about the local area - crime, amenities, schools, road noise etc

Join the local area Facebook page if there is one. We really liked a house overlooking and lovely village green and children’s park (beautiful view from all of the main rooms). After joining a local page I found out that the council wants to sell that stretch of green to a pub chain (with a massive concrete carpark and move the park away). The pub chain isn’t submitting their formal planning application till October, so wouldn’t have show up in searches!!!

Local knowledge is really helpful. Good luck OP

Really helpful all. Thank you!

You can also Google to get the flood maps for the property

Planning applications are available on local authority website and you can see for the property you are buying and those locally. Google search the road name and the district ( for example Bexleyheath or southsea) we did this and discovered a house we were due to view was going to be slap bang in the middle of a redevelopment scheme and the quiet dead end street would be reopened and houses on the other side of the road likely compulsory purchased to widen the road) a good google search turns up loads

If you use the website OurProperty this will list all the sold prices for the property. I assume you will be getting a survey done so this might flag up problems with the house itself.

Get a surveryor for that particualr area, not an online one and definitely not one recommended by the EA. Go round with the surveyor and insist you attend at the same time, ask questions so you can make sure the survey is comprehensive.