Homebuyers Report
A RICS Home Buyers Report is not a “Snagging Report” offered by some companies operating in UAE
A Home Buyers Report can only be carried out by a RICS Licensed professional.
What is a Home Buyer Report (Level 2 Survey)?
A Home Buyer Report (otherwise known as the Level 2 RICS Survey) is a survey to find and document any problems in a property that could cause damage and need future repairs, such as dampness or subsidence. A Home Buyer Report is prepared after a survey is carried out on homes that are in reasonable condition and only checks for easily visible problems.
The Home Buyer Report will not mention every single aspect of the building, but it can reveal issues that might impact the value of the property and need further investigation. It will include all major sections of a property that are visible to the surveyor, so they will not lift up floors or carpets and wiring will not be included.
What is included in a Home Buyer Report?
The Home Buyer Report includes:
- Background information on the property and location
- An estimate for the cost of re-building the property for insurance purpose
- An assessment of any damp-proofing, drainage, or insulation in the building (although drains are not tested)
- Condition of the building’s timbers and checking woodworm or rot
- Damp test results taken from the walls
- Details of urgent problems which should receive specialist attention before signing a contract
- Details of major faults in easy to get to parts of the property that may affect its value
The Home Buyer Report is easily understood – written in plain English rather than technical jargon.
What happens if the survey finds a problem?
Most surveys will find some sort of issue, especially with older properties. If you have any concerns you can highlight these with the surveyor before they carry out the inspection. Most surveyors are usually happy to talk through the report with you over the phone after you’ve received your report – so if you do have follow-up questions, that would be the time to ask.
Some of the most common things you might want to investigate are:
- Electrics
- Issues with the roofing
- Central heating
- Damp
- Structural problems which may need an engineer
If you find any of these issues you may need to take further action, such as:
- Ask the surveyor how much it might cost to fix these issues
- Get a quote from a builder/ professional for major works
- Renegotiate the asking price or ask the seller to fix the issues before you complete on the sale
Condition Ratings
The RICS Home Buyer Report has 3 condition ratings to evaluate and describe the condition of the property and how urgently it needs repairing. The conditions are defined by RICS as:
- Condition Rating 1 – no repair currently needed
- Condition Rating 2 – defects that need repairing or replacing but are not considered to be serious or urgent
- Condition Rating 3 – defects that are serious and/or need to be repaired, replaced, or investigated urgently
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