What do surveyors check when valuing houses?

Only one in five property buyers commission a survey before purchasing a new home. But most buyers will get a valuation on a place because the lender insists on it before agreeing to a mortgage.

While those valuations will be carried out by a chartered surveyor, the actual inspection cannot be compared to a RICS Level 3 building survey or a RICS Level 2 HomeBuyer Report, both of which are more detailed examinations of a property's structure and condition.

Instead, the valuation is usually in place to ensure the lender will not lose out if the buyer defaults on the mortgage.

A valuation surveyor assesses a property on behalf of the mortgage lender, not the buyer. Their job is to determine whether the property is worth what the buyer has agreed to pay and, specifically, whether the lender could recover the outstanding mortgage amount if the buyer defaulted and the property had to be sold.

This is an important distinction. A valuation is not a health check on the property. It will not flag every defect or maintenance issue a buyer might want to know about before committing, and it is not a substitute for a survey.

A mortgage surveyor will look for any apparent defects or problems with the property that may impact its value. Mortgage valuations are required for both buying a house and remortgaging. In the latter case, the homeowner will likely want the valuation to reach a certain level to access more funds from their lender. The lender, however, needs to ensure that the property will fetch at least the mortgage level when sold on the open market.

The lender will apply the same criteria to a new purchase. They need to know if the house or flat will sell for at least the outstanding mortgage amount so they don't miss out. That occasionally conflicts with what the buyer might need, which is the valuation to reach a particular level to achieve the best mortgage offer.

The element of risk involved for the lender tells you how important it is to understand that the need to protect the lender's investment means the valuer will err on the side of caution when it comes to putting a figure on a property, a valuation that will be realistic to the surveyor but might seem pessimistic to the buyer or re-mortgagee.

All lenders have different criteria for mortgage valuations, and individual cases are treated on their own merits. That means the surveyor will receive a specific brief tailored to the property they have been asked to value.

In general, they will examine the exterior and interior condition of the property, assessing any renovations or extensions and looking for any potential issues such as damp, electrical problems, missing roof tiles or leaking guttering. Their job is also to ensure the particulars of the property are accurate: that it is a first-floor flat or a three-bedroom detached house, with no nasty surprises such as an extension without planning permission or a large room illegally subdivided.

Where the surveyor does spot potential problems, these will be outlined in the final report, often with a recommendation that a more detailed RICS Level 3 building survey takes place.

The property surveyor will inspect the house for defects and examine the local area for flood risk and other environmental factors, such as planned developments or those underway, road projects, exposure to radon gas and the like.

They will also look at what similar properties locally have achieved on the open market in recent months to make a reasonable comparison with the one they are valuing. That is not always an easy task for various reasons: your chosen property might be a one-off, and there may not have been many sales of that type in the last six months.

Ideally, the surveyor will look at the sale price of at least three similar houses or flats locally for comparison, but they may have to cast the net wider geographically to achieve this. This process plays its part in the eventual valuation reached.

The surveyor aims to be as accurate as possible in their property valuation report. A lower valuation that comes in below the agreed sale price can feel disappointing, but it may open the door to renegotiating the sale price with the seller, which is rarely a bad outcome for the buyer.

If you are weighing up whether to go further than a valuation, our house survey cost guide sets out what each survey level involves and what to expect to pay.

A mortgage valuation may be enough for some buyers, but the security and peace of mind that comes with having a more detailed investigation of your potential new home carried out cannot be beaten.

At Surveyor Local, we work exclusively with RICS-accredited chartered surveyors across England and Wales. Our team can arrange for a local surveyor to carry out the survey of your choice quickly and efficiently.

To find out which survey is right for you, call us on or get a quote online.