Your offer has been accepted, the mortgage is moving, and someone has just told you that you need a survey. If your first thought was “another cost, another delay”, then you are not alone. Most buyers see the survey as one more hurdle between them and the keys.
It is worth reframing it. A survey is the one point in the whole process where somebody looks properly at the actual building you are about to spend a large sum of money on. Here is what happens, what the different types cover, and what to do if the report comes back with bad news.
Your mortgage valuation is not a survey
This is the single most common misunderstanding we come across.
When your lender sends a valuer round, they are answering one question: is this property worth enough to lend against? They are not checking whether the roof is sound, whether the wiring is safe, or whether that hairline crack in the back bedroom is cosmetic or structural.
Plenty of buyers assume the valuation has covered them, only to discover an expensive problem after they have moved in. If you want to know the condition of the property, you need to instruct your own survey, separately, and pay for it yourself.
The three levels, and which one you probably need
Surveys from RICS-registered surveyors come in three levels, and the right one depends on the age and condition of the property.
- Level 1 (Condition Report) is a basic overview using a traffic-light system. Suitable for a modern, conventional property in visibly good order.
- Level 2 (HomeBuyer Report) is the middle option and the one most buyers choose. It flags visible defects such as damp, movement or rot, and can include a valuation.
- Level 3 (Building Survey) is the detailed one. Worth the extra cost for older, larger, unusual or heavily altered properties.
What actually happens on the day
You do not need to be there. The surveyor arranges access through the estate agent, and the inspection usually takes anywhere from an hour for a Level 1 to half a day or more for a Level 3.
They will look at the roof, walls, windows, floors, roof space, drainage and services, along with any outbuildings and the boundaries. They inspect what they can see and safely reach. A surveyor will not lift fitted carpets, move heavy furniture, or open up walls, so a report that says nothing about a particular area may simply mean it was not accessible.
The written report typically follows within a week or two.
The report has flagged problems…. now what?
First, do not panic. Almost every survey on an older home comes back with a list. The job is to work out which items are genuinely serious, which are ordinary maintenance, and which you already expected.
For anything significant, get a quote from a specialist so you know the real cost rather than the surveyor’s estimated range. From there you have a few options: ask the seller to carry out the work before completion, renegotiate the price to reflect it, ask for a retention, or accept it and budget accordingly.
Your conveyancer will need to see a copy. We will tell you whether an issue is one that also needs following up in the legal work — an extension with no building regulations sign-off, a boundary that does not match the title plan, a shared drain with no maintenance agreement. Those are legal problems as much as physical ones, and they are handled very differently.
If you are selling, a survey can still work for you
Sellers often forget they can commission their own report before listing. It costs money up front, but it removes the nasty surprise halfway through a transaction, when a buyer’s survey lands and the price renegotiation starts from a position you have not prepared for.
At the very least, deal with the obvious things: clear access to the loft hatch, the meters and the boiler, fix the missing tiles, and have paperwork ready for any work you have had done.
How Dudden Law Can Help
Our property team in Cardiff acts for buyers and sellers across South Wales, and we work alongside your survey rather than treating it as somebody else’s paperwork. We will explain what the findings mean for your purchase in plain English, tell you which issues need chasing through the legal side, and help you negotiate a sensible outcome so the transaction keeps moving.
You can also track your matter through our online client dashboard, so you always know where things stand.
Insights from Molly Davies, Dudden Law Solicitors