Would you have a survey done in this scenario?

[AdamantEve]

House I’m buying is approx 4 years old - a self build so doesn’t have a developers guarantee. I’m expecting the conveyancer will double check all building work has been signed off etc by the council so there are no issues with planning or building regs.

Visually the house is in good condition, as you’d expect from its age. From research I’ve done, homebuyers surveys seem mostly visual and not in depth so not sure they would report anything we wouldn’t have noticed ourselves? Then a building survey seems OTT for a property of this age.

Don’t really mind spending the money as it’s pennies in comparison to the house price but wondering really how useful it might be? If it was an older house I’d not think twice.

What would you do?

Honestly I would. Sign off from building regs is just that compliance has been met, doesn’t guarantee quality.

That said I think homebuyers are a complete waste of time but I would want to some degree someone with a good eye to look at it.

I definitely would
To prevent problems in the long run..
We currently private rent, and is in negotiation to buy this house however a house in our street got this surveyor done, and turns out it was built with mica ( if you look it up it's a crisis atm in Ireland )
It is now a requirement where we live that if a homeowner wants to sell their home, they have to pay I think it's 5k to have the check done

Surveyors don't really look at anything in depth.

You would better off getting a structural engineer to look at it.

I’d defo want a survey.

For all you know, the small company or individual that built it might have cut corners as they’re nearly going bust and wood prices are high so they’ve not been able to do stuff they wanted, or made serous mistakes which haven’t been caught.

For the sake of a few hundred quid I’d get one done. Even if it’s a grand it’s still a small fraction of the purchase price and gives you peace of mind.

Definitely agree that I’d feel happier having it checked over but not convinced a basic survey will tell us much, the checklist for them says they look at damp, whether windows open/close, turn taps on and off etc all seems quite basic stuff.
The house has no loft for them to check (just crawl space as rooms at attic level)

I looked at quotes for the more in depth building survey and was told it was not necessary for the age and type of house! And this coming from surveyors themselves. So confusing.

The current owner is the builder (which is their trade and I’ve checked out their feedback online from paid work they’ve done which all seems good)

Maybe a structural engineer would be the best shout? Where do you find one of those?!

A self build should have a 10 year building guarantee from an organisation such as NHBC even though it won't have a guarantee from a developer.

We have recently completed a self build and getting a build guarantee in place was a standard part of the process. Our mortgage company required it and I would expect that you would struggle to get a mortgage on the property without one.

I would be very dubious about the build quality of a new build with no form of guarantee in place. Smacks of cowboy builder.

@AdamantEve

@OnGoldenPond turns out there IS a 10 year building guarantee, we were told about this yesterday, I had just (wrongly!) assumed this wouldn’t be a “thing” for self-builds. So that’s actually reassuring.

Arranging a home buyers survey too, I will be surprised if they flag anything but think I’ll feel happier just doing it for peace of mind regardless.

Can you not get a snagging survey done?

Of course.

I don't see any problem here. Firstly self builders are a great deal more meticulous than builders of mass housing projects and certainly does not 'smacks of cowboy builders' (sigh). The 10 year guarantee and building control certification will cover you for more than a new survey which will only look at areas of the building that are accessible. The foundations are not accessible now but were to LA Building control. Have you ever used a builder you can trust? Pay him/her for 2 hours to view it and they will pick up on anything a homebuyers report would.

I would have the second level survey done, it seems unusual to be selling after only 4 years having built their own house, unless they're divorcing or something. Most self-builds I have heard of stay in them for life (built their dream house etc).

I think you are right to get a basic survey. We bought a 15 yr old house 2 1/2 years ago which we thought had been built by a reputable company but it turned out it was a build by a small building co along with the big company so some things are not as ‘professionally’ done as i would have expected. But the biggest problem has been the render which has failed.

We have had to get the whole house re-rendered. There were hairline cracks which in my naiveté thought just needed filling and a fresh coat of paint - but no.

Luckily for us the big co had done the render and they agreed it had failed so we didnt have to pay - but it could have been £25000 plus.

We didnt survey as thought a newish property would be fine and we werent getting a mortgage and had fallen in love with our dream home!

Lesson learned!

This is the most expensive thing you will buy. Yes always get a survey.

I would also add that all may not be as it seems to the untrained eye; my last sale was to a cash buyer, who opted not to have a survey done.

I was hugely relieved as when we originally purchased the property our survey led to the discovery of some subsidence and underpinning x 2 before us. We didn't walk away as it was the only property we could find within budget, and we were quite frankly desperate after a year of looking. There were no issues with the wall during the years we lived there, however if the cash buyers had had a survey, they may have taken a different view.

In the grand scheme of things even if the survey costs £1,000, it's a minuscule proportion of the investment you are making, and could save you from an expensive mistake.

Yes, most definitely arrange a survey with someone who is qualified and a member of RICS.

Even if I was the architect - I’d still recommend

@BurgerOnTheOrientExpress

I don't see any problem here. Firstly self builders are a great deal more meticulous than builders of mass housing projects and certainly does not 'smacks of cowboy builders' (sigh). The 10 year guarantee and building control certification will cover you for more than a new survey which will only look at areas of the building that are accessible. The foundations are not accessible now but were to LA Building control. Have you ever used a builder you can trust? Pay him/her for 2 hours to view it and they will pick up on anything a homebuyers report would.

The OP initially stated that the house did not have any housebuilders guarantee. That would have pointed to a less than professional build and was what I was referring to. The OP has now clarified that it does indeed have the 10 year guarantee so there isn't a problem. No need to sigh just read my comments in the proper context.

I've had two homebuyers and a full Structural done in the last few months. To be honest the homebuyers was just as extensive and a lot cheaper. Depends on the surveyor I guess.

* This is the most expensive thing you will buy. Yes always get a survey.*

^This. I don’t understand how people can spend so money on a house but try and skimp on the survey. The mind boggles.

I'd get a good report done. I bought a 7yo house in a modern estate and in the 4 years I was there I found masses of stuff that was wrong with a couple of things that were dangerous. I did a lot of fixing before selling it, some was done by shouting at the developers and their subcontractors so only cost me phone calls. It was 'signed off', except it wasn't inspected before being signed off

Most of the self-builders I know are builders, so I'd definitely get a survey! I'd also check that the house matches the planning permission granted. A basic survey might highlight anything that needs looking at in detail.

@OnGoldenPond,. as someone already mentioned , many self builders intend to stay a long time in their new builds. As LABC cover the most important aspects of the build the 10 (15) year guarantee becomes superfluous in that case. Consider also the exclusions that are in the 'guarantees' together with the fact that household buildings cover will insure against the most costly incident , that is , subsidence. Context of your post is just an excuse, there is nothing wrong with admitting you jumped to conclusions and were wrong. Hope you are never on jury service.

@BurgerOnTheOrientExpress

As you will see if you bother to read the thread from the beginning the OP stated in her opening post that the property had no building guarantee. I then responded to that statement. After reading my post the OP responded that in fact they had been mistaken and there was in fact a guarantee in place.

From my very recent experience as a self builder I know that all the specialist self build mortgage providers we looked at required us to buy a policy with one of the leading guarantee providers before they would advance us a penny. Once the build was completed and the final guarantee certificate was issued we remortgaged to a mainstream mortgage provider to get a better rate. All the providers our broker looked at required this guarantee as a condition of lending. The broker confirmed that no mortgage provider would lend on a recent new build property which did not have such a guarantee as it is standard practice for any new build, whether developer or self built, to have such a guarantee. So a property without a guarantee, which is the situation as initially stated by the OP, would be unmortgageable. Any reasonable person would see that as a big red flag and would indicate a project undertaken by someone who didn't know what they were doing! AKA cowboy!

Please do forgive me for not using my crystal ball and not knowing in advance of posting how the OP would respond to what I was about to post!

It's OK to admit you were wrong now Burger before you dig a bigger hole for yourself.

@OnGoldenPond. You libeled someone that you have never met nor I presume had ever had dealings with. Thus you prove yourself to be no better a judge of human beings than you are a specimen of one.

I note that you find it outside your scope to admit you are wrong and apologise.

Personally a basic survey and get 2 good builders and or structural engineer to have a look.
Also get a second viewing and give yourself a good hour to look over everything.