You have received the survey of the period house you want to buy and it is full of doom and gloom.
Take a deep breath, relax, and understand that most surveyors will be careful to cover their backs; their professional future depends on it and house problems are often difficult to diagnose. Furthermore, in the time available, he or she cannot investigate a problem fully - to determine the seriousness of it or indeed the cause.
Here is an excerpt from a typical survey:
Let us review this point by point.
The survey may also comment on signs of woodworm; again this needs independent advice from an expert with more time to discover whether the infestation is active.
The surveyor is often not saying that there is a definite problem; only that there may be one, and indicating the likely remedial action that would be needed. The sad conclusion is that by getting these 'problems' documented and drawn to the attention of the mortgage provider, the prospective buyer is cajoled into spending money on immediate work which may be un-necessary and inappropriate.
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