Your Survey Found Problems: What to Fix Before You Move In
Most surveys read alarmingly, and most findings are maintenance. A small number genuinely reorder your budget: damp, a roof at end of life, unsafe wiring, structural movement. This guide sorts the findings that matter from the ones that do not, puts them in the right order of work, and shows how to use them to renegotiate with evidence rather than indignation.
What a survey does and does not tell you
A survey is the one document in a purchase written for you rather than for the lender or the seller. It is worth reading properly rather than skimming for the traffic lights.
| Level | What it covers | Suits |
|---|---|---|
| Level 1 | Condition summary with ratings, no advice on repairs. | New or near-new homes in visibly good order. |
| Level 2 | Visual inspection of accessible areas, defects rated, advice included. | Conventional homes in reasonable condition. |
| Level 3 | Detailed inspection, likely causes, and what to do about each defect. | Older, extended, altered or neglected property. |
The levels follow the RICS Home Survey Standard. Whatever level you pick, a survey reports what was visible and accessible on the day — it does not lift carpets, move furniture or open up structure.
The findings that actually change your plans
Most surveys read alarmingly. A small number of findings genuinely reorder your budget and your sequence of work; the rest are maintenance.
| Finding | Why it matters | Where it sits in the order of work |
|---|---|---|
| Damp | Cause matters more than the reading. Untreated, it ruins new plaster, floors and decorating. | Diagnose and fix first — before any finishes. |
| Roof covering near end of life | Water getting in undoes everything below it. | Before internal work, or you will pay twice. |
| Old or unsafe wiring | Safety issue, and rewiring means floors up and walls chased. | Before floors, plastering and decorating. |
| Structural movement | Needs a structural engineer, not a builder's opinion. Affects lending and insurance. | Resolve before exchange if you can. |
| Drainage problems | Often shared and can involve the water authority or neighbours. | Investigate early — ownership questions take time. |
| Boiler and heating age | Rarely urgent, but replacing it while the house is empty avoids losing heat and hot water later. | Convenient to do in the empty window. |
Triage: fix now, plan later, or walk away
Sort every finding into one of three buckets before you start pricing anything. Trying to cost the whole report at once is how people talk themselves out of good houses and into bad ones.
- Fix before you move in — anything that must happen before finishes go on, or that makes the house unsafe or uninhabitable: damp cause, roof leaks, unsafe wiring, no working heating.
- Plan for later — cosmetic work, kitchens and bathrooms you want to redesign anyway, garden and outbuildings, and "monitor" items with no active problem.
- Investigate before exchange — anything flagged "further investigation", plus structural movement, and anything a lender or insurer would ask about. Buying the unknown here is where real money is lost.
- Walk-away territory — a defect the seller will not let you investigate, or one whose cost genuinely cannot be bounded before you commit.
Using the findings to renegotiate
Survey findings are a legitimate basis for revisiting price, but only when you make it easy to say yes. Specific beats indignant.
- Get one or two written quotes for the defect before you open the conversation. A number from a trade carries weight; a number from you does not.
- Separate urgent defects from work you were always going to do. Asking the seller to fund your new kitchen because the survey mentioned the kitchen will get a no.
- Offer alternatives — a price reduction, the seller completing the work before completion, or a retention held on completion.
- Put it in writing through the agent, attaching the quotes and the relevant survey extract.
- Be realistic about leverage: it is stronger in a slow market, weaker in a competitive one, and weakest if you have already been chosen over higher offers.
Services we can arrange after a survey
BestBuilders matches you with vetted local trades for any of the jobs below — one short form, up to three quotes, no obligation.
| Service | When you need it |
|---|---|
| Building survey | The report itself, before you commit. |
| Damp proofing | Once the cause is diagnosed — not before. |
| Roof replacement | Covering at end of life, or active leaks. |
| Rewiring | Old consumer units, no earthing, or a failed condition report. |
| Boiler replacement | Ageing or unsafe heating, easiest while empty. |
| General builder | Several findings at once, or a job that needs coordinating. |
Survey findings FAQs
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