Buying a House

Before you decide to buy a house see what mortgage you can get from the bank and building society. Then you can decide whether you would like to buy a new house or one that needs some work. If you decide to go for the second option calculate one third of your budget for the property and one third of the budget for the repair and building work; one third  should also be put towards the unexpected. With new house you should look at the area that the house is located in. If you are looking for a family house look to see if there are any good schools in the area, also check what shops are near to you, like supermarket and where the nearest local shops are. If it's on an estate, built up areas or connected to a road; go at different times of the day or at evening to see what the area is like. If the house is connected to a road go at busy times like e.g. 8 am to 9 am and 11am to 2 pm and 5pm to 8pm to see what the traffic is like. If you don't have the time then you can hire private investigator that can do a survey of the area and will give a report on the neighbours, work traffic or any other problems. If you think it’s a bit over the top then just remember that you will probably be living there for 5 to 25 years and if you have a nuisance neighbour's, then that's a long time to live with them, it could also will lower the price of the house.

Buying a New House

When you go to see the property, keep your eyes open because even though it is a new house does not mean that it is in good shape, it might have been put together badly look for cracks and damp patch. Also ask if the house has been insulate to current standards, check the roof to see if it is straight and that there are no sags or no missing slates. Make sure that it has the right type of slate on the roof, you can tell if the roof is bowing were the wrong slate is too heavy for the roof to hold up. If the house has a flat roof look at the sides and check that the felt has no cracks or coming off on the roof. Ask what felt was used and if it is guaranteed not to leak, check the room underneath the roof and look at the ceiling, make sure there are no patches of damp because flat roofs are more likely to leak than standard roofs.

Check that the house has good window locks and door locks, check that the house looks secure and also whether the house has got a burglar alarm make sure it was fitted by a reputable company. When you do decide that this is the house that you want get a survey done. It makes sure that there is no hidden surprises like it was built on a tip or that the walls were built incorrectly and that they had planning permission etc. Also if it on a new estate ask the neighbour in the area if they have had any problems and if so how long did it take to get it fixed.

Buying a Old House

When you go to buy an old house you should take a look at the roof to see if there are any missing slates on the roof if there are a couple of slates missing that is fine and easily fixed but if there is a patch of missing slates then most likely you will have to put in a new roof. Also make sure that the roof has the right type of slate on the roof, to check to see whether the roof is bowing, this is an indication that the slate is too heavy for the roofs supports.

You will also need to check all the rooms in the house to see whether any of the walls have any cracks in them or have any damp patches; these could cause you problems later down the road. When looking for damp check to see if there are any brown marks on the wall, also look to see if there is any mould and look for plaster dust on the floor or skirting board. Look at the wiring to see if the house has old plug sockets and light switches, if they have new socket don't assume that the house has been rewired ask to see the fuse box and look at the wiring, if it is new the wiring should be grey and not the old black wiring. Also check that the house has got a circuit breaker and not the old fuse wire blocks, this will tell you the age of the wiring.

Check that the house has good window locks and door locks, check that the house looks secure and also whether the house has got a burglar alarm make sure it was fitted by a reputable company. When you do decide that this is the house that you want get a survey done. It makes sure that there is no hidden surprises like it was built on a tip or that the walls were built incorrectly and that they had planning permission etc. When you get the survey, look at it carefully and work out what you are capable of doing and where you will have to get specialist help. Then ring round and tell them what survey has come up with and the type of job you want them to do, ask for a quote when you have got all them calculate how much it will cost and then add about an extra third on for surprises and see if it still in within your budget.

Buying a Derelict House

If you are buying a derelict house buy only consider buying it if you like the house or the area. Do not get it if you want to make a profit on the property because if the house has gotten to point that it is a derelict then it has been seen by at least 3 to 4 builder already and most likely has numerous issues with the house. If you are set on the house then definitely get a survey done on the house to see how much work you will have to do on it, look carefully at the survey and see what you are capable of doing and what work you will need to get specialist help for. Then ring round and tell them what survey has come up with and the type of job you want them to do, ask for a quote when you have got all them calculate how much it will cost and then add about an extra third on for surprises and see if it still in within your budget.