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The Government has changed some of the regulations put in place to deal with the coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic, which means the property market has reopened in England*. The new guidelines aim to continue to protect public health but do allow buying and selling of property to resume. At Surveyor Local, our top priority at all times is taking care of our customers and our employees. Here’s how More..

This article refers to a recent Home Buyers Survey. Got Christmas all wrapped up but still need to arrange one last thing when buying your new home? Surveyor Local makes it easy to sort out a building survey because we’re open across the festive period. Our team are standing by to help you choose the building survey that best suits your purpose. We can then instruct a chartered surveyor More..

Communities across the north of England have been badly affected by flood with severe warnings in place in Yorkshire, Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire and Lincolnshire. More than 30 flood warnings are in place as the Environment Agency and rescue services work to reduce the risk of more flooding and keep communities safe. A month’s worth of rain fell in one day on the area, leading to rivers More..

A building survey can often reveal unpalatable truths about a property we are keen on buying. But would you go ahead with a property purchase knowing there are issues with a home’s structure? According to new research, a third of us (32 percent) would do exactly that. Failed to take action Atom Bank quizzed people over how they would react if they got bad news about a property they were More..

More than 11,000 complaints have been made to Network Rail about the spread of Japanese knotweed since 2011. The company, which owns and runs the UK’s network of rail lines, have received more than 6,000 complaints that the invasive plant, non-native to the UK, is spreading on to private property from Network Rail sites. The Times made a freedom of information request to Network Rail, which More..

Anyone looking to buy a home from a keen DIY-er should beware. Research shows that fewer than half of us (43 percent) would employ a professional tradesperson to carry out maintenance on their home, while almost a third (29 percent) would try their hand at plumbing, a quarter (24 percent) would be keen to get wired into electrical work and 13 percent would be undeterred by a lack of skill or More..

Commissioning a building survey when you are about to embark on a property purchase is definitely one of the soundest financial decisions a home buyer can make. That’s why you need the expertise of a chartered surveyor who is a member of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) to call upon. At Surveyor Local, we only work with RICS chartered surveyors, giving you the peace of More..

Specialist training is now available for chartered surveyors who want to improve their expertise in identifying the presence of Japanese knotweed and other invasive garden species. The Property Care Association (PCA), the trade body for the industry, has developed the training to help professionals deal with the garden invaders. Examining non-native species The one-day Invasive Plant More..

Buying a new-build home and convinced you don’t need a building survey? Think again. A recent story reported by ITV News highlights the importance of having an independent chartered surveyor look over even the most modern of properties. New home a ‘House of Horrors’ A family who had bought a brand-new detached home in Loughborough, Leicestershire, in 2017, described their More..

A building survey is a must when you’re buying a property. But even the most rigorous of examinations may not always provide the answers a home buyer requires. A London homeowner is to receive £50,000 in compensation after a surveyor failed to spot that the garden of his new £1.2 million London flat had invasive Japanese knotweed. ‘Visibly present’ The knotweed had been More..

The threat of flooding posed by climate change is influencing a major new government strategy on flood resilience. The Environment Agency has started an eight-week consultation on its plan to make all of England’s infrastructure resilient to flooding and coastal change by 2050. Put communities in control Its chair, Emma Howard Boyd, launched the consultation saying “we cannot win a More..

Property buyers investing in a new-build home might think they won’t have to do any work ensuring their new home is structurally sound. But new-builds often come with issues that need to be identified and rectified early. Many lenders will, in fact, demand a structural survey to ensure the property they’re lending on is worth the money. That’s where a snagging survey comes in, a More..

Don’t let a bank holiday weekend get in the way of your essential building survey! At Surveyor Local, we are open right across the Easter holiday to answer all your queries about the right building survey for your property purchase. The Surveyor Local Easter opening hours are: Good Friday, April 19, 9 am until 4pm Easter Saturday, April 20, 9 am until 4pm Easter Sunday, April 21, 9 am until More..

UK homeowners have spent an average of £8,000 on home improvements in the last five years. New research from the National Association of Estate Agents (NAEA) shows a remarkable £48 billion has been spent by DIYers and home improvers. Its figures show that an incredible 98 percent of homeowners have carried out some kind of work on their property in the last five years. Aiming to add value Many of More..

Buying a new home is a big financial and emotional commitment. There are lots of potentially tricky steps on the way to completing a purchase. Ensuring the property you are bidding on is worth the money you’re offering and has no defects or structural issues that are not obvious on first viewing. That’s why instructing a chartered surveyor to carry out a survey of the property is More..

The unseasonably warm weather in February might have been a boon to gardeners, but it also gave a boost to the garden pest that is Japanese knotweed. The invasive plant usually emerges in late March or early April, but February’s unusual heatwave prompted its appearance in the likes of North Devon. Record high temperatures Ground temperatures at this time of year are usually around 4C, but More..

All new homes built will have low-carbon heating to future proof property and reduce the UK’s carbon footprint. Chancellor Philip Hammond announced that the Government is to adopt the Future Homes Standard by 2025. Reduce environmental impact That means all new property will have to be built with the latest green technology, a move that should drive down energy bills and reduce the More..

The UK needs to future proof its housing stock against climate change by introducing new measures in new residential developments, according to a new report. The Committee on Climate Change (CCC), which provides independent advice to government on how to build a low-carbon economy and prepare for climate change, has made a series of recommendations that it says should be implemented. Targets on More..

A new tracker that will identify where Japanese knotweed has been found across the UK is up and running. Environet UK has developed the Japanese Knotweed Heatmap to build a picture of local sightings of the invasive plant. Chartered surveyors who carry out building surveys on properties can use the heatmap to assess any potential risk to a property or site, ensuring buyers in residential property More..

Two-thirds of us overspend on home improvements and DIY because we don’t realise the extent of the work required. And seven out of 10 homeowners don’t even set a budget for the work in the first place, leading to being well out of pocket in the end. Rated People, the online marketplace that connects homeowners with tradespeople, quizzed its  users on their attitude to home More..

More information is to be made available on dealing with Japanese knotweed, the invasive plant that can cause serious issues in property. A Parliamentary inquiry has recently been held into the presence of the non-native plant with the Science and Technology Committee asking for greater detail and guidance on dealing with knotweed. Free download offers information While that guidance is being More..

Drones have been making news headlines, most recently with incidents at Gatwick and Heathrow and this week at Newark airport close to New York. Flights at those airports were disrupted when drones – unmanned aerial craft controlled from the ground – were spotted, posing a risk to aircraft. However, while irresponsible individuals could use drones for mischievous or even illegal More..

Many home buyers put instructing a survey well down their list of things to do when they find their ideal property. But ignoring a home’s condition simply because its location is ideal or the price is right or because you don’t want any additional outlay can be a misstep. At Surveyor Local, we understand how vital a survey can be in reassuring a buyer or uncovering issues that could More..

Winter may be biting, but these short, dark days don’t deter determined home buyers from pursuing the purchase of their dream property. What winter does, however, is give purchasers the chance to stress test the property they buy with a thorough building survey that could reveal any potential issues or structural defects. Weather extremes can often expose particular problems such as More..

The holidays are upon us, but the hunt for building survey services doesn’t stop over the festive period. At Surveyor Local, we are open over the holidays so you can instruct the survey you require to be delivered as quickly as possible. Here are our opening hours over the festive period: Friday, December 21, 9 am until 6pm Saturday, December 22, 10 am until 4pm Sunday, December More..

When a historic property in San Francisco was sold to a builder who intended to renovate it as his new family home, neighbours and the city council were delighted. However, Ross Johnston then illegally knocked down the house. And now San Francisco Planning Commission has ordered him to build a complete replica and erect a plaque explaining to the world what he did. Essential to consult an expert More..

More than half of us fail to get an independent building survey done when we buy a new house, but a third of us are then unhappy about issues with the property that only becomes apparent once we move in. The results of a survey carried out by retailer Terry’s Fabric Warehouse revealed that more than 50 percent of Brits resist commissioning a building survey. Basic valuation wasn’t More..

The UK’s long hot summer has caused major subsidence problems in properties across the country. According to insurers, claims reached their highest level for 12 years between July and September, when average daily temperatures regularly reached 30C. South-eastern England was the worst-affected area because much of the soil there is clay, which is prone to subsidence. Ground starts to shrink More..

A new guide aims to give buyers more accurate information on the property they plan to buy, ensuring they pay a fairer price. The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) has produced its Measurement Matters guide, which aims to reduce inconsistent and inaccurate practices in measuring the size of property. The guide is aiming for a consistent approach to measurement when property is being More..

An astounding £20 billion is said to have been knocked off the total value of the UK property market because of the pervasive presence of Japanese knotweed. New research has revealed that many mortgage lenders refuse to lend to anyone looking to buy a property affected by the spread of the weed, an ornamental plant that was first brought to the UK in the mid-19th century and has been identified More..

A complete overhaul of property tax in the UK is required to rebalance the housing market. According to the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS), abolishing Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) on certain properties would be a start. In its latest Residential Market Survey, almost half of the property professionals that responded, including estate agents and building surveyors, wanted the More..

Commissioning a building survey when you intend to buy a house can save you thousands of pounds or even prevent you making a mistake in buying the property in the first place. A recent question-and-answer article in the Guardian related the worrying case of a buyer whose building survey “highlighted serious issues with the roof”. Those issues mean that extensive repair work or even More..

Failing to get the right kind of building survey done when buying a house can leave a homebuyer seriously out of pocket. A new study by home interior specialists Hillarys shows that more than half of new homeowners had to pay out almost £3,000 on essential repairs AFTER they had purchased their property. In the survey, three out of five homebuyers (62 percent) quizzed by Hillarys didn’t More..

House hunters may be losing out financially and on the homes they want to buy because of a gap between the valuation of the property and the price they have offered to pay. According to estate agents Emoov, “down valuations” are becoming more common because chartered surveyors are concerned about the property market. A down valuation happens when a surveyor carrying out a survey of a More..

Buying a newbuild home may seem a risk-free enterprise. No leaky roofs, no crumbling walls, simply a brand-new construction that’s going to be maintenance free for years. The reality for some is shockingly different and suggests getting an independent chartered surveyor to examine the property before you sign on the dotted line could be essential. A recent episode of the BBC’s More..

Japanese knotweed is rarely out of the news. Regarded as the most invasive and destructive plant, its risks to property have been well-documented over the decades with many mortgage lenders refusing to lend on a property where it is present. However, the plant may not be as risky to property as previously believed, according to new research. Researchers from the University of Leeds teamed up with More..

One of the more unusual entitlements that homeowners enjoy is a right to light. Under English common law, this ensures that just over half the room in your property be lit by natural light, and any developments nearby have to take your right to light into account. A recent high-profile case involving Chelsea FC demonstrates that the law remains on the side of ordinary people whose property is More..

Every penny is a prisoner when it comes to moving house, with expenses, often unexpected, around every corner. But instructing a building survey on the home you want to buy now could save you money in the long term. The fact is that having a professional examine the property you are keen on with an expert, unbiased eye could well be the best money you spend in the entire process. A survey carried More..

The UK needs to build more flood-resilient homes. The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) has called for innovation in house design along with changes in regulation to ensure newbuild properties and existing homes are safe from flooding and future proofed against unexpected events. RIBA published a report entitled The Value of Flood Resilient Architecture and Design, demanding that the More..

At Surveyor Local, we aim to provide complete customer satisfaction every time, and our client reviews show that our service can make a difference. The many five-star reviews left by our customers on Trustpilot demonstrate that our customers appreciate the effort we make in providing the right surveying services at the most affordable price. Recent reports from the BBC claimed that some More..