For Buyers · Lincoln & Lincolnshire
Before you commit.
Buying a house is the biggest cheque most people ever write, decided on two viewings and a report full of hedged language. Here is what each stage actually tells you, and where an independent opinion is worth the hour.
We are not RICS surveyors, and this page will tell you when to hire one
The Surveyor Co records condition and gives a plain second opinion. We do not produce HomeBuyer Reports or Building Surveys, we do not value property, and we are not a substitute for a chartered surveyor where one is needed. The point of this page is to help you spend that money in the right place.
The Purchase · Four Moments
Where the money actually goes wrong.
Not at exchange. At the second viewing, when you decide what to worry about, and after the report, when you decide what to act on.
01
Second viewing
You like it, but you are about to commit more money than you ever have. This is the cheapest moment to have someone walk round with you who looks at property all week.
What to look for when viewing02
Offer accepted
Now the money starts. A mortgage valuation is for the lender, not for you, and it is not a survey. Decide here whether you want a Level 2 or Level 3 report, because the answer depends on the age and state of the house.
Level 2 vs Level 3, and when you need neither03
The report lands
Most Level 2 reports come back full of amber ratings and the phrase 'further investigation recommended'. That is the surveyor protecting themselves, and it leaves you deciding which ones actually matter.
What a house survey costs, honestly04
Quotes and specialists
Damp, drains, roof, electrics, structure. Four trades, four opinions, all of whom sell the fix they are quoting for. Getting an independent read before you spend is usually the cheapest hour of the whole purchase.
Buyer risk reportAsked & answered.
For anything other than a modern, well-kept house you are buying with cash, yes. A mortgage valuation is not a survey: it exists to tell the lender the property is worth the loan, and it will not tell you the roof is failing. A RICS Level 2 report suits most conventional homes in reasonable condition; Level 3 suits older, altered, or visibly troubled properties.
A valuation is for the lender and is often a drive-by or a very brief inspection. A survey is for you, and inspects the property's condition. You may be charged for the valuation, which leads a lot of buyers to think they have had a survey when they have not.
A RICS Level 2 report is commonly £400 to £900 depending on price and size, and a Level 3 typically £600 to £1,500 or more. Set against a purchase, it is small. Set against a problem it would have caught, it is nothing.
No, and we will not pretend otherwise. It is an hour with someone who will tell you what they would worry about, what they would check, and what they would ignore — before you spend on the formal report, or after it, to work out which caveats matter. If you need a survey you still need a survey.
Yes. A lot of the work is exactly that: a crack that has appeared, a stain that keeps coming back, or a builder's quote that does not smell right. That is the owner's opinion visit.
Our sister brand does. If a property has a damp problem you want it diagnosed properly, with instruments and a written report, and The Damp & Mould Man does that today.
For Buyers
Read these first.
What to look for when viewing a house
The things worth twenty minutes of a second viewing, in the order a professional would look at them, and the ones that genuinely do not matter.
ReadHouse survey cost: what you pay, and what you actually get
Typical prices for RICS Level 1, 2 and 3 reports, why a mortgage valuation is not a survey, and how to decide which one a property needs.
ReadLevel 2 vs Level 3 survey: which one does this house need?
A practical test based on the age, construction and condition of the property, rather than on your budget or the estate agent's suggestion.
ReadWalk round with us first.
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