Tuesday 15 January 2008

House alerts

Caveat emptor indeed!

Yes, that golden rule that you ignore at your peril.

So what are the salient points of getting that housing yoke firmly around your neck?

  • Never trust the seller - they are out to make as much money whilst glossing over the true state of the building and other associated undiscovered problems
  • Always get at least three but preferably five estate agent valuations - yes even if you are buying
  • Always get a full survey done of the property, including electrical's - otherwise you might find at some stage that your fuse box starts smoking and potentially going up in flames. At the very least it could be condemnable
  • Never trust the seller
  • If you are thinking of living in a vibrant energetic part of town, remember that as lovely as that is, when you want peace and quiet the noise will drive you insane
  • Check to see if they have neighbours above, and if it's a conversion whether they have sufficient carpet and underlay down and not wooden flooring
  • Never trust the seller
  • Check all radiators, fittings, fixtures
  • Find out what's hiding underneath that big painting or mirror, and been covered up by that artex* finish or polystyrene tiling - is it damp or will all the plaster work need re-doing?

With financial markets somewhat edgy, best wait a couple of weeks as the rate of repossessions increases and bargains will be out there to be had!

* Care should be exhibited when working with old Artex surfaces as the original formulation of Artex contained white (Chrysotile) asbestos which could release airborne asbestos fibers when worked upon. This practice ended some time around 1980, although reports vary

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