Property Inspection Toolkit
Yes, do your own inspection, even if...
Careful inspection of properties you view is recommended both If you are hiring a surveyor anyway, and especially if you are not.
The latter first: the lender's valuation will tell you very little about the state of the tiles, windows, floorboards and other key parts of the property. A great deal will ride on what you observe yourself.
If you hire a surveyor, your burden eases considerably, but it helps to be a good observer anyway. You may detect enough problems on your own to walk away from a property without having it surveyed - thereby saving the surveyor fee. You can also identify possible problem areas that you want your surveyor to look at carefully.
Basic Inspection Tools for Amateurs
Binoculars.
Torch.
Tape measure.
Camera, preferably digital, preferably with zoom.
Stepladder or stool.
Umbrella (if you are lucky - see below.
A pad and pen, or digital recorder or other doodad, to make notes.
Binoculars give you a close-up look, and digital pictures allow you - and your friends and advisors - to have a look, too.
PWP Tip Sofas and other large objects may easily fit through a front door, and may get out of your living room as easily as it went in. But sofas need to be tipped to allow entry, especially through an internal door. If you have a large sofa or other piece of furniture and the property has narrow doors or corridors, careful measuring in advance and expert advice may be needed.
PWP Tip Measure the garage thoroughly - height as well as length and width - to ensure it is wide and high enough to accommodate your vehicle.
Binoculars enable a closeup view of the roof, the upper-storey windows and window panes, and the chimney. View neighbouring properties as well.
Camera. If the vendor doesn't object to internal snaps, pictures serve as an excellent memory aid. Permission should not be needed for external shots. You can also email your photographs to your surveyor for their opinions and advice.
Tape Measure Will your sofa or grand pianos fit through the doors (plural - remember the inside door widths as well as the front door)? Take measurements - or photographs - of potentially tricky areas.
Umbrella. In some respects, rainy days provide ideal conditions for property viewing. During a downpour, look closely at doors, windows, drainpipes and other areas where water is likely to enter. If you can not enter the loft, at least open the trap door and see if any light or rain is coming through.
Eyes, Ears, Nose. Do the windows project beyond the wall so that rainwater will drop clear of the wall? Are the undersides of the windows clear or stained? What about gutters and downpipes?
Dry rot refers to a timber fungus in moist wood that gives off a mushroomy odour and contains white, grey, yellow or red woolly strands. Holes in wood may be a sign of woodworm or other infestation - but can also indicate a woodworm problem that has been treated.
Lofts If you are able to enter the loft, look especially at the joins where wood meets brick, and where insulation material begins and ends. Insulation may prevent ventilation, and the resulting damp may result in fungal decay. Does the water tank have a lid, is it lagged, and it is easily accessible?
Note-taking. If you view many properties over several weeks or more, you can quickly forget which one had the bright living room and dark kitchen, or vice versa. And if you take notes without labelling them properly, you may find that you have forgotten which notes and observations apply to which properties. Write your notes on the estate-agent property particular sheets (or your computer printouts); if you use separate sheets, make sure you note the property address.
But I Know Nothing About...
Most of us don't know our purlins from our pituitaries - and most of us don't even consider doing their own preliminary survey. Besides, homebuyers face the same problem as professional surveyors: we can not see through walls and fitted carpets and behind bricks and tiles.
You don't need to be an expert to spot water stains beneath a window or missing roof tiles. If you stand at the front door and look skyward, you might be able to see if the facade is straight or wavy. You can see how much decorating the property may require.
After you perform your own survey, you can approximate the amount of money you will need to spend for repairs or improvements.
Will the vendor agree to a lower price to reflect the amount you will have to spend on repairs? If not, the sooner you find out, the sooner you can cut your losses.
Final point: veteran chartered surveyor Malcolm Hollis argues that, even if you can not see beneath carpets and through walls, all is not lost. You may not see actual dry rot, for example, "but you can detect the conditions likely to give rise to dry rot."