| Buying a house can be a really stressful time. It's | | | | this will probably be fine for you. |
| the biggest purchase you'll probably ever make, | | | | The survey will establish if there are any major |
| plus it's a difficult process to go through. And | | | | problems to be worried about, and whether or |
| when you have found the right home, there's | | | | not the property is worth what you have agreed |
| sometimes a little voice at the back of your head | | | | to pay. |
| saying "what if something goes wrong?" | | | | If it's an unusual house, you will need a building |
| Are you justified having these fears? Or is buying | | | | survey, which is much more expensive but |
| a house actually no worse than trying to sell | | | | considerably more detailed (and will spot any |
| property? | | | | serious structural defects). |
| We look at some of the worries you have and | | | | Another fear of people buying a property is that |
| what you can do to fix them. | | | | they will move near the neighbours from hell. And |
| First off the obvious ones, caused by the seller. | | | | for good reason. A survey by the Halifax out this |
| They may gazump you, which is where they | | | | week revealed that a quarter of us have had |
| accept your offer for the house then later accept | | | | neighbourly disputes. |
| a higher offer and reject yours. This is perfectly | | | | The biggest problem quoted was noise, topping |
| legal as the price of the property is only fixed on | | | | the poll with more a quarter of people blaming it |
| the day contracts are exchanged. | | | | for a dispute. |
| The seller can also throw a spanner in the works | | | | A disagreement over boundaries was the next |
| by withdrawing their acceptance of the offer, for | | | | biggest complaint, affecting 14 per cent of people. |
| example if they have changed their mind about | | | | And then pets and parking were considered |
| moving. They can even accept more than one | | | | issues. |
| offer, in what's known as a contract race. The | | | | These are one thing, but here's a statistic likely to |
| first buyer to complete gets the house. | | | | strike fear into anyone buying property. Eight per |
| Amazingly, this is legal. | | | | cent of complaints in the survey were caused by |
| Another concern is that there will be something | | | | antisocial behaviour, other than noise. The |
| wrong with the actual structure of the building | | | | behaviour of children caused seven per cent of |
| itself. The fear of subsidence or damp is a | | | | complaints, while rubbish was only an issue for |
| genuine one - it happens and can be financially | | | | two per cent of complaints. |
| ruinous if it strikes your property. | | | | More women than men admitted having a dispute |
| The answer of course is simple and relatively | | | | with their neighbours in the last 12 months - 34% |
| inexpensive. You should get a full property survey | | | | of women compared to 29% of men. And |
| done on any building you are thinking of buying. | | | | women were more likely to complain about |
| Surprisingly, it's estimated only one in five people | | | | antisocial behaviour, whereas almost three in ten |
| do this when buying a home, perhaps because | | | | men who had disputes admitted it was because |
| they think the mortgage survey is enough. | | | | of noise. |
| But the mortgage survey is there just to | | | | Scared you yet? There are ways to fix the |
| establish that the house is worth at least as much | | | | problem of falling out with your neighbours. There |
| as is being loaned on it. For full peace of mind you | | | | are free mediation services available, and you can |
| should consider getting a homebuyer's report. If | | | | also ask your local authority's environmental health |
| your property is of conventional type and | | | | officer to look into noise problems. |
| construction and was built in the last 30 years, | | | | |