Things to Check Before Buying a Property

While houses remain prohibitively priced throughout the UK, the property market is poised to experience a marked dip in the near-term.

In fact, the market could see the average property price decline by 10% between now and the end of 2023, creating a small window of opportunity for aspiring buyers to take their first, tentative step on the housing market.

Photo by R ARCHITECTURE on Unsplash

But if you do decide to buy a property in 2023, what are the key considerations? Here are some factors to keep in mind:

Why are Checks so Important?

Buying a house is an expensive process, even accounting for the current market dip and economic downturn.

Remember, those of you who already own property may see any potential savings countered by the reduced value of your own home, so little will change in this regard.

Checks can ultimately help to reduce long-term costs, while identifying potential issues that may enable you to reduce the purchase price. 

Similarly, checks can help you to make discoveries that may impact on future renovation or resale plans, potentially avoiding significant delays to specific projects and negating the need to invest in costly or complex structural changes.

Your Property Buying Checklist – 3 Key Considerations

When you engage in the buying process, there are a few universal considerations regardless of your current homeowner status. These include:

• #1. Obtaining Survey Data: Surveys provide objective inspections of a property’s exterior, paying particularly attention to structural issues and problems such as damp. By engaging a surveyor to inspect a property that you’d like to buy, you can identify potential problems ahead of time and choose whether to abandon your interest or adjust the asking price. Just remember, mistakes made by a surveyor could lead to a claim for professional negligence (for which you may be awarded financial compensation), so it’s important to ensure that your service provider covers all bases.

• #2. Consider Planning Permissions: If you’re an ambitious individual who wants to invest in a cut-price home and develop this further, you’ll need to give consideration for any potential planning permissions. These dictate precisely how you can develop a property without requiring planning permission and the consent of your neighbours, while the rules will vary depending on the location and nature of your property. By checking permissions before you buy, you can ensure that a particular house is suited to your goals and objectives.

• #3. Energy Efficiency: While the price of wholesale gas is falling in Europe, this remains a key driver of inflation in the UK and beyond. With prices unlikely to stabilise until the war in Ukraine is over,  a home’s energy efficiency should be another key consideration if you want to save money and optimise future resale value. Remember, properties with poor energy efficiency and a low EPC rating will cost more to heat, as they may lack insulation or a modern boiler unit.