I believe so yes. I'm not entirely sure though.
My First House
- Thread starter Yaayuh!
- Start date
I believe so yes. I'm not entirely sure though.
Hi Rossi
sorry to jack your thread but I just was hoping you could tell, did you pay extra for this survey report or was it part of the Conveyancing fees?
We are in the process of buying a house and have used Country wide. We made our offer 30/05/213 and are tyring to decide if we wil get a HIP and if so will we go with Country Wide or with someone else.
Thanks and best of luck!
sorry to jack your thread but I just was hoping you could tell, did you pay extra for this survey report or was it part of the Conveyancing fees?
We are in the process of buying a house and have used Country wide. We made our offer 30/05/213 and are tyring to decide if we wil get a HIP and if so will we go with Country Wide or with someone else.
Thanks and best of luck!
Hi there.
The report was a part of the Home Buyers Survey we arranged through our mortgage, which costs more than the standard valuation that you require for the mortgage but it's highly recommended.
A HIP just gives you basic info on the property e.g. Energy Efficiency and a lot of the info is in a Home Buyers Survey.
If you want to know of any potential issues with the property and the state of it then you will require a Home Buyers Survey, it cost us around £500 and the report was very good and useful, albeit slow.
Here's some useful info: http://www.fool.co.uk/Property/guides/Surveys-And-HIPs.aspx
The report was a part of the Home Buyers Survey we arranged through our mortgage, which costs more than the standard valuation that you require for the mortgage but it's highly recommended.
A HIP just gives you basic info on the property e.g. Energy Efficiency and a lot of the info is in a Home Buyers Survey.
If you want to know of any potential issues with the property and the state of it then you will require a Home Buyers Survey, it cost us around £500 and the report was very good and useful, albeit slow.
Here's some useful info: http://www.fool.co.uk/Property/guides/Surveys-And-HIPs.aspx
Went over to the house at the weekend to inspect the questionable DIY and general care. Took some pictures and rooms etc.
Here's where the annoyances come in, a few "Why did you do that" and a general "what the hell" moments. They will keep me busy for a while.
Front fence doesn't come across all the way to the dropped kerb.
Canopy over the front door is coming away from the wall.
DPC is too low due to the patio being layed.
Conservatory lacks a gutter on one side, full of gunk and whatnot (some sort of plant growing in there i think.
The horrible state of the airing cupboard.
Hole in the wall. They boxed in pipes and realised the stopcock was behind there and made a rouch hole..
Messy power cables and trunking used pretty much everywhere. Will have to get it re-done and channeled.
Where they did "channel"/"recess" it was done badly.
TLC needed in many places. This is the sort of example of the owner's care and attention to detail.
However, the bathroom doesn't need touching. The other half loves it, i think it's nice too. Fixed shower and standalone baths aren't everyone's taste though.
You can probably be able to build a picture up of the sort of things i need to do.
-- Re-lay laminiate in hall and lounge along
-- Carpets upstairs
-- Break down and re-box pipes
-- Extend/replace front fence
-- Fix canopy back to the wall
-- Replace fence in the rear garden and "puppy proof" the garden and boundaries
-- Get trees in back garden cut down (far too tall and shade the garden a lot, not too sure here and they're the nextdoor neighbour's trees... going to be a delicate issue to tackle)
-- Bash in the wall in the garage conversion to get a usable garage back. Internal door required also.
-- Tackle the attic/roof with insulation, boarding and truss braces. Will need to fix a cover to the tank whilst i'm up there too
-- Boiler is old and as you can see, a mess.
Then there's the decorating on top of that, the easy stuff.
Regardless of which, i'm seeing them more as "projects" and "challenges". Things that when i resolve and stand back i can be proud of the job i've done.
Here's where the annoyances come in, a few "Why did you do that" and a general "what the hell" moments. They will keep me busy for a while.
Front fence doesn't come across all the way to the dropped kerb.
Canopy over the front door is coming away from the wall.
DPC is too low due to the patio being layed.
Conservatory lacks a gutter on one side, full of gunk and whatnot (some sort of plant growing in there i think.
The horrible state of the airing cupboard.
Hole in the wall. They boxed in pipes and realised the stopcock was behind there and made a rouch hole..
Messy power cables and trunking used pretty much everywhere. Will have to get it re-done and channeled.
Where they did "channel"/"recess" it was done badly.
TLC needed in many places. This is the sort of example of the owner's care and attention to detail.
However, the bathroom doesn't need touching. The other half loves it, i think it's nice too. Fixed shower and standalone baths aren't everyone's taste though.
You can probably be able to build a picture up of the sort of things i need to do.
-- Re-lay laminiate in hall and lounge along
-- Carpets upstairs
-- Break down and re-box pipes
-- Extend/replace front fence
-- Fix canopy back to the wall
-- Replace fence in the rear garden and "puppy proof" the garden and boundaries
-- Get trees in back garden cut down (far too tall and shade the garden a lot, not too sure here and they're the nextdoor neighbour's trees... going to be a delicate issue to tackle)
-- Bash in the wall in the garage conversion to get a usable garage back. Internal door required also.
-- Tackle the attic/roof with insulation, boarding and truss braces. Will need to fix a cover to the tank whilst i'm up there too
-- Boiler is old and as you can see, a mess.
Then there's the decorating on top of that, the easy stuff.
Regardless of which, i'm seeing them more as "projects" and "challenges". Things that when i resolve and stand back i can be proud of the job i've done.
After much stress and patience. We now have a completion date of 19th July 
Had some strange things to deal with recently, like the garage conversion. The 2/3 of the garage is converted into an office. There is no paperwork for the conversion as it was "done by a friend" and was "paid cash in hand".
It doesn't really matter as one of the first things i'm going to do is take a sledgehammer to the conversion and get my garage back!
I just wanted to make sure that we're not taking on something "illegal" per se.
So yeah, 19th July! Wooo!
Had some strange things to deal with recently, like the garage conversion. The 2/3 of the garage is converted into an office. There is no paperwork for the conversion as it was "done by a friend" and was "paid cash in hand".
It doesn't really matter as one of the first things i'm going to do is take a sledgehammer to the conversion and get my garage back!
I just wanted to make sure that we're not taking on something "illegal" per se.
So yeah, 19th July! Wooo!
Rossi~;24450694 Will need to fix a cover to the tank whilst i'm up there too Boiler is old and as you can see said:Tank in the loft is so old fashion & totally unnecessary today, rip all out, & install a super efficient combi boiler, maybe be with a megaflow if you want mains pressure hot water.
What idiot puts a fixing in a mortat joint on the Canopy .
You ideally need 150mm between dpc & patio.
Conservatory is a proper bodge job, I would have put in a proper valley drainage channel.
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After much stress and patience. We now have a completion date of 19th July
Had some strange things to deal with recently, like the garage conversion. The 2/3 of the garage is converted into an office. There is no paperwork for the conversion as it was "done by a friend" and was "paid cash in hand".
It doesn't really matter as one of the first things i'm going to do is take a sledgehammer to the conversion and get my garage back!
I just wanted to make sure that we're not taking on something "illegal" per se.
So yeah, 19th July! Wooo!
If you have a completion for 19th July, have you actually exchanged contracts yet? If so, a month between exchange and completion seems a long time!
As for the garage conversion, yes you are taking on an "illegal" conversion, but if you're knocking it out after you've moved in then it doesn't matter really. That is the worse that the planning office could tell you to do anyway.
Indeed this is what i plan to do eventually but it will be an expensive job so will patch up what is there for this year.
What idiot puts a fixing in a mortat joint on the Canopy .
I know, the canopy is a bodge fixing overall really, but the canopy itself is fine. Will take it down and seek advice on how to mount it properly. Any ideas?
Yep. Ideally we do, however, i'm not worried. I may cut away the patio from the conservatory and leave a drainage gap or something. Not sure yet.
Someone went full retard when building in. Though i think the conservatory was there first, before the the small extension to the side of it. I think it was the fault of the builders for that rather than the conservatory. The res of the conservatory is pretty damn good tbh.
You should see the pipe work that is in our airing cupboard.....
Looks great though and is perfect example of how you can turn something nice into something your own Its funny the things you notice that people have done after you move into a place and when you are looking to buy one, I don't know the ins and outs of pretty much all DIY/Maintenance/Plumbing/Electrics but I have looked around my house that we bought recently and just thought "wtf " so many times. Ah well, time to hone my DIY skills and get on with it
Looks great though and is perfect example of how you can turn something nice into something your own
Its funny the things you notice that people have done after you move into a place and when you are looking to buy one, I don't know the ins and outs of pretty much all DIY/Maintenance/Plumbing/Electrics but I have looked around my house that we bought recently and just thought "wtf " so many times. Ah well, time to hone my DIY skills and get on with it 
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the join on the conservatory roof to the garage will be interesting in winter. Is there any drain off at all? It look as if it will just pool with water.
anyway congratuylations and good luck hope it all goes smothly
anyway congratuylations and good luck hope it all goes smothly
the join on the conservatory roof to the garage will be interesting in winter. Is there any drain off at all? It look as if it will just pool with water.
anyway congratuylations and good luck hope it all goes smothly
Not sure, either way, it's something i'm going to do sooner rather than later.
Clear out the join completely, check condition of the join and make sure it's all waterproofed with some sort of coating.
Then i will look at getting some sort of drainage membrane/gutter.
You got there eventually!
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Congratulations Rossi
Good luck with the move!
Good luck with the move!
Met the next door neighbours either side, both brilliant and very helpful. One of them introduced me to an electrician that lives a few doors up and he popped round to go over the house with things we need and want changing. Great little community
Some bad news though, other than a lot of cleaning and DIY to sort out, we need a window replaced in the bathroom. It obviously been left open constantly and the hinges/metal parts have rusted and the seal has gone on the pane, there is 2-4 cm of mold between the glazing.....Any idea how much windows cost to replace?
Also, the conservatory gutters are full of gunk and haven't been cleared, so it leaks on one side, came down this morning to a puddle.
Some bad news though, other than a lot of cleaning and DIY to sort out, we need a window replaced in the bathroom. It obviously been left open constantly and the hinges/metal parts have rusted and the seal has gone on the pane, there is 2-4 cm of mold between the glazing.....Any idea how much windows cost to replace?
Also, the conservatory gutters are full of gunk and haven't been cleared, so it leaks on one side, came down this morning to a puddle.