I’m looking at 5 houses and want to pick the best one. Of course I need to see the surveys now. Tell me which bank is this that will pay for the 5 surveys?
What does a survey consist of and why are they so expensive?
In the US we have home inspectors, and we have surveyors. A home inspector is generally responsible for auditing the structure and mechanicals of the home for issues. A surveyor is only responsible for identifying property boundaries.
A home inspection is under $1000, usually $250-500. I don't know what a survey costs as I've never been involved in a property boundary dispute as US homes are generally on large enough plots that encroachment issues aren't that common.
>>What does a survey consist of and why are they so expensive?
They aren't, OP makes it sound like it costs an arm and a leg. The costs are around £300-400, about £500 if you want to pull out all the environmental reports as well, which while not insignificant in itself, is not really a big deal when buying a house for hundreds of thousands of pounds.
Fair enough, I don't know anyone who bought a house this way though. For me personally it was always 1) find a house 2) ask the bank to do the survey 3) based on the survey either carry on with the mortgage or retract my offer. Yes I probably couldn't do 5 houses at once, but I have done 3 houses consecutively this way before, no issues whatsoever with the banks.
You make the offer contingent upon the inspection and have the inspection performed prior to signing. The purpose of inspection is not the find 'the best one' but to determine if there are any major problems that should shift the sale price for the house you have already selected.
In the US we have home inspectors, and we have surveyors. A home inspector is generally responsible for auditing the structure and mechanicals of the home for issues. A surveyor is only responsible for identifying property boundaries.
A home inspection is under $1000, usually $250-500. I don't know what a survey costs as I've never been involved in a property boundary dispute as US homes are generally on large enough plots that encroachment issues aren't that common.