Prospective BISF owner in need of advice
This is a Member submitted Post
Hi
I am currently thinking of purchasing a BISF house and would welcome some advice as I am in two minds about going ahead with it. My surveyor is recommending a buildings survey as well as a home buyers survey. I was wondering if it was worth the money and if the buildings survey would make it easier to get home and contents insurance? The house itself is on Brittain Drive in Grantham and I was also wondering if anyone had any information on these houses and the work on them that was undertaken by the Council in the 1990s?
Sorry I keep forgetting to say things! My only final note is if you do instruct a surveyor- make sure you check that they are well educated with BISF houses first otherwise youl be asking for trouble. Same for mortgages- Im sure youve got this from the site already but only certain lenders will happily consider BISF houses so make sure you apply to one of the more known- or check with them first before proceeding with a full application.
Good luck
No problem bud Im in the same boat as you.
If its been properly rennovated I really wouldnt be concerned much as a structural survey would be wasted as they wouldnt see any of the structure. A homebuyers survey may even be a little overkill but is probably still worth it for piece of mind. My structural survey showed me everything that I could already see with my bare eyes (im buying a BISF house that has had NO work done to it in over 60 years), so Im half inclined to think if yours has been fully updated your surveyor wouldnt be able to tell you anything you cant see yourself but Im no expert on this.
Good luck
Oh and regarding insurance- no the survey would make no difference, it is purely for your information so you know of any defects prior to committing to purchase
Thank you Grangey for your advice. There are so many different opinions on BISF houses that it is sometimes hard to separate fact from fiction The house itself has been very well maintained and renovated and I fell in love with it as soon as I stepped in the door. As a potential first time buyer of a BISF house this site has been invaluable.
First of all your surveyor is shafting you something wrotten if he is trying to tell you to get a homebuyer survey AND buildings survey. You should only ever need 1 survey and I would certainly opt for the most thorough- the order of which are as follows (most thorough at the top).
Structural survey- invasive
Structural survey- non invasive
Homebuyer report
Valuation survey
I would certainly recommend a structural survey if possible however these can also be a waste of time if non invasive as they can only check what they can see- and although ive not seen a homebuyer report on a BISF house, my structural survey simple covered off everything the surveyor could already have seen, with the exception of the fact they did make the effort to go the step further to try to remove some damaged render to view the state of the stanchoins which I dont believe they would on a homebuyers.
In my limited experience, I would say it depends on the state of the property, if it has been relativly well maintained and doesnt show any immediate signs of concern, homebuyers survey I think would be ample, but for complete piece of mind go for a structural. You would NEVER need both as the structural should cover everything the homebuyers does.
Theres an article on this website which actually has two reports from a BISF house which you can compare, one is a homebuyer report and one i think is structural so check it out (I cant find the link right now Im afraid).
Good luck and keep us posted