Posts Tagged ‘Legal Matters’

House Home Flat – Property Building Structure – Surveys Reports.

What is basically happening to define these products?

House Surveyors will all tell you they all do the same things to produce property surveys. PROinspect are Home Surveyors but also Experts that Barristers/Solicitors and the Courts refer to for expert opinion on negligence and so we know what causes inferior service levels and customer dissatisfaction.

With this background we know that our formula that defines the PROinspect service level standard is second to none at all.

So what do building surveyors actually do when they get to a house, the home of a seller?

Basically – they inspect systematically all the component parts of a structure for a whole raft of defect and hazard types and then translate that into the report type requested and then offer advice on that content. It is not the “what” that matters, more the knowledge and experience of the individual surveyor and the amount of time he or she is prepared to take to compile your report. This goes far beyond a detailed site inspection.

For the most popular survey product in England & Wales this means that the following are inspected and reported upon……..

1. Chimney Stacks
2. Roof Coverings
3. Rainwater Pipes & Gutters
4. Main Walls
5. Windows
6. Outside Doors
7. Conservatory & Porch
8. Other Joinery & Finishes
9. Roof Structure
10. Ceilings
11. Walls & Partitions
12. Floors
13. Fireplaces, Chimney breasts & Flues
14. Built-in Fittings
15. Woodwork
16. Bathroom Fittings
17. Electricity
18. Gas or Oil
19. Water
20. Heating
21. Water Heating
22. Drainage
23. Common Services
24. Garage
25. Other (Outbuildings)
26. General (Site)
27. Regulations
28. Guarantees
29. Other (legal) Matters
30. Risks to the Building
31. Risks to the Grounds
32. Risks to People
33. Market Valuation
34. Rebuild Cost assessment

It is reasonable that as the Surveyor will be limited by floor coverings, linings, insulation, fittings, possessions that the report cannot be an invasive investigation after damaging the premises to take it apart to see how it is put together. Caveats will apply but these are only valid if they are reasonable in all the circumstances.

With the above in mind it becomes self-evident that the more you pay a competent Surveyor the better the survey product that you will get. We cannot, because of space limitations, elaborate on this but suffice to say it our experience that cheap often means second-rate. No substitute exists for spending time and effort before the inspection, at the property, after the site inspection and then “in the office”. Time means money.

What defines a good house surveyor and the best home survey product?

• Clear and direct communication between customer and surveyor at the fee quotation stage.
• Being informed of your survey options to get the right survey product for your individual needs (there are many products to choose from).
• Finding a truly an experienced and knowledgeable Surveyor for the locality of, and construction type of, the home to be viewed.
• Obtaining a plain language report created at the level that the customer can understand.
• Structured Surveyor/Customer communication post-report so that the customer has the confidence to proceed.

With the greatest will in the world this does not happen when customers choose big companies or when the option is chosen to combine the loan valuation with a private survey.

It takes effort for a home buyer to get the right recommendation to a good Surveyor. That effort will be rewarded massively when defects or problems are found – when the going gets tough, the tough get going – you need a robust professional on your team and that is what PROinspect are. If you get a quote from anybody other than the actual Surveyor who is going to inspect your next home then that person, and the company that they are employed by, should not be considered as worthy of your custom. Move on until you find an unbiased, true professional who you can take seriously.

If your home or property is in southern England then I invite you to call me for further opinion and advice. Stuart Parrett +44 (0)1489 896 174

LEGAL COMPLIANCE ISSUES REMAIN?

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A DAY IN THE LIFE OF A HOUSE SURVEYOR

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Picture the recent scene – House for Sale, price agreed, finance settled, legal matters done, only the survey to be done.

Surveyor finds various disrepairs and works are needed. No problem – most matters are said (on the Agents Details) to be newly refurbished/completed and therefore assumed to be covered by guarantees. BUT – the HIP had not had any of the usual Report and Certification documents uploaded to it and the requested HIP did not include a copy of the Property Information Questionnaire (which is mandatory) to point the surveyor in the right direction.

Result?

The Surveyors’ private survey report to the purchaser had to include detailed “what if” (with guarantee and without guarantee) comments for each defect plus valuation advice on the basis of with and without guarantees. This created greater uncertainty and complexity such that we had to hold a one-to-one meeting with the clients to re-assure them that it was worth continuing and how they should proceed.

Our Surveyors role was extended from defect diagnosis to part legal and part marketing advice to hold things together. PROinspect have no problem with this but many Surveying Practices would not go that extra mile and so the Agents and Seller got lucky (to date we have received no thanks from Seller or Estate Agents).

The Sellers interest could have easily been disadvantaged had ANother surveyor been choosen to act for the clients.

All for the sake of taking HIPs seriously and using them intelligently. The Sellers, but probably the Agents, in the context of this specific case, could have uploaded -

(1)   Multiple Contractor Reports and Certificates/Guarantees

(2)   Building Control Approvals, with Plans

(3)   Details of rights-of-way

(4)   Boundary ownership

(5)   Simple list of what recent work was completed (more than just “main items”).

PROinspect have experienced a sequence of transactions where the Agents had not acted legally: HIP documentation was not forthcoming, or was incomplete, when requested by us. This is the first occasion where we have been critical of Sellers/Agents and so compliance is generally not an issue, it seems.

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Lets compare the performance of the Commercial Markets is getting its act together on mandatory commercial buildings Energy Certification. The following is an article from QUIDOS recently –

Commercial landlords ignore energy performance legislation

• Survey highlights compliance rates of just 22% with recent commercial energy legislation
• Landlords show reluctance to commission surveys amidst depressed market conditions
• Trading standards officers to use report to target property without an EPC

Quidos Limited, experts in property energy assessment and compliance matters have published the results of an autumn study into commercial energy efficiency certification across several South West regions, conducted with assistance from local Trading Standards officers.

The report shows that Landlord compliance with the 1-year-old Energy Performance Certificate legislation for commercial property (currently for sale or let) was still very low, with only 22% of commercial property appearing to carry a valid energy certificate.

Areas surveyed with their compliance ratings:

Area	Sample size	With EPC	No EPC	Not found
Bristol	200	44 (22%)	103 (52%)	53 (26%)
BANES	228	61 (26%)	54 (23%)	113 (49%)
Dorset	55	10 (18%)	29 (52%)	16 (30%)
Cornwall	125	22 (18%)	73 (58%)	30 (24%)
Wiltshire	115	20 (17%)	39 (34%)	56 (49%)
	723	157 (22%)	298 (41%)	268 (37%)

Although these results must be qualified by the methodology used they have surprised many industry professionals who had considered EPC compliance to be over 80%. Whilst Quidos have stressed that the figures are at best illustrative and focused only on the South West, they do highlight a lack of industry compliance which is likely to be repeated across the UK.

Speaking after publication, Quidos Operations Director Nick Branch spoke in favour of moves to improve awareness of energy efficiency; “These certificates provide a valuable asset rating of the energy performance of buildings. This data can and is being used by forward thinking landlords to improve the energy efficiency, and value of their property portfolio. With low cost loans available from the Carbon Trust, these energy saving improvements can be capital neutral in the short term and revenue generating in the longer term.”

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SAVING ENERGY

UpMyStreet’s room by room guide to energy saving. You could save up to £383 a year. Data taken from the public “upmystreet” website on 26/10/09:

Indeed, if you insulate all walls and all loft spaces to today’s thermal standards you could then change the space and water heating timeclock such that the fuel is off for about 30 extra minutes a day; you could also turn the thermostat down one or two degrees. These factors will save you money but continue to achieve the same comfort standards as before you upgraded your insulation – Why? – because your home heats up quicker and does not cool so quickly.

Kitchen:

1. Fill up your dishwashers and washing machines before you use them: one full load uses less energy than two half loads. By only using your dishwasher when it is full you could save an extra £15 a year.
2. Turn the temperature on your washing machine down from 60 to 40 degrees or, if you can, 30 degrees. Most washing powders will work just as well at a lower temperature.
3. Try to defrost your freezer regularly to keep it running cheaply. An over-iced freezer will have to work much harder to stay cool, in turn wasting more energy.
4. Only fill and boil your kettle with the amount of water you need when making a cup of tea.

Bathroom:

1. By turning off the tap while brushing your teeth you could save a massive five litres of water each time.
2. Place a Hippo (water saving device) in your toilet cistern and each time the toilet is flushed this will save you around three litres of water and money off your water bill.
3. The Energy Saving Trust recommends swapping one bath a week with a five minute shower to save up to £15 per year off your energy bill. Just make sure it’s not a power-shower as these can consume just as much.
4. Fix those nightmare leaky taps to save approximately four litres of water a day.

Living Room:

1. Switch your normal light bulbs to energy saving ones and you could use 80% less electricity. Energy saving bulbs last up to ten times longer too, just don’t forget to turn the lights off when leaving a room.
2. Rather than leaving your appliances on standby, turn them off at the source and make yourself a saving of £33 a year.
3. Insulate your home. Cavity wall insulation will help reduce the amount of energy you need to heat your home and keep it warm. This will make you a saving of £115 a year. While insulating your loft can make an extra saving of £150.
4. Turn the thermostat down by just one degree and although you probably won’t feel the difference you will be able to cut your bills by 10% making a saving of around £55.

So, in conclusion it seems we can save fuel and therefore money in order to pay the fines imposed for non-compliance issues. Great.

No – but seriously, well done residential Estate Agents but look out Commercial Agents: Trading Standards Officers will have picked up on these issues.