Are searches necessary when buying a house?

Searches are very necessary when buying a house as the protect the mortgage lenders(if you buy your house with a mortgage) interest and your interest.

When buying a home there are various searches which are carried out on a property to ensure that everything works fine and there are no restrictions, developments or contracts in place which can diminish the value of the property or the structure of the property.

Each search carried out on a property will pertain to an important part of the property and the complete list of searches will give the conveyancer confidence that they have carried out their job to the best of their abilities.

Searches are also very necessary as they strengthen your negotiating hand if you find any issue with the property which may affect its value.

Searches are also very necessary as they will let you know if the property has been built without the right planning permissions and if you are potentially about to buy a property which could b eat risk of demolition.

Local searches help obtain information on anything happening n the local area that might affect the property. E.g is there a new road being built, a new bridge or is there any information from the local council that may affect the properties value.

Drainage and water searches provide information about the drainage and water pipes local to your property. Is a drainage close to your house or a water pipe which runs underneath or next to your house. This sort of information will help you further assess the value or future value of your home.

Envireomental searches on the property will have to do with anything that may affect the property within the environment it is situated in. This could be contamination or a similar issue. By having this information prior you will be able to get an idea of what any future costs may be.

With a planning search you will be able to find it out if your neighbours have got planning consent for a large extension, or a planning application has just been lodged for a new factory or theme park within your region that could increase the number of vehicles that drive past your house etc.

Flood risk report –

check whether the property is at risk from flooding. This will aloow you to know if you need flood insurance and any work that you could do toyour home to safeguard it from a flood.

A coal mining, brine pumping search is to find out if the property could be affected by old mine workings, or a new opencast mine nearby

make sure that your new home will not be affected by this planned new rail line

check that you won’t be liable to pay for the maintenance of your local church

make sure that the seller still owns the property on completion. This search will also reveal if the owner is going through bankruptcy and this could affect your ability to buy the property.

If you need financial advice and you live in the UK then you could contact the Money Advice service over the phone or via chat for impartial advice.

You can also contact the debt charity “Step Change” if you are in debt and need help.