RICS Level 2 Home Buyers Survey

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Introduction to Home Insight Survey

The Home Insight Survey (HIS) is a new survey product that is intended to be commissioned by a property seller, and which can be relied upon by the seller, a prospective buyer, and a successful buyer. It has been created to provide important information for sellers, buyers, estate agents, and conveyancers.

The HIS addresses a growing gap in the market in England and Wales for a product targeting property sellers, rather than the more traditional approach which is for buyers of a property to be the commissioning client.

Key Features of the Home Insight Survey:

Is based on a standard visual and non-invasive survey inspection, as would be undertaken for any existing standard survey product.
Does not include a valuation and is not intended for reference by lenders.
Provides for full reporting of property defects, encompassing health & safety, environmental, conveyancing, and climate change risks and information.
Is offered in a standardised format that cannot be amended by users, ensuring that all sections of the report need to be completed prior to final lodgement.
Is accompanied by standardised Terms & Conditions created and reviewed by a specialist law firm.
Is prepared on the basis that it can be relied upon by the seller, prospective buyers, and the successful buyer of the property.

Inspection Details

Surveyors should carry out a normal “full and thorough” visual inspection as defined in the RPSA Survey Inspection & Reporting Standards. This would also be equivalent to a standard RICS Level 3 survey inspection.

Surveyors should employ the same equipment they would utilise when undertaking any standard home survey inspection.

Report Contents

The report is structured into the following sections:
1. Summary
  - Summary
  - General Condition Summary
2. General Information
  - Weather
  - Orientation
  - Limitations
  - Construction Types
  - Insulation Levels
  - Primary Heating Fuel
3. Material Information
  - Connected to mains services
  - Ulez
  - Listed, Conservation, National Park
  - TPOs
  - Non-Standard Constructions
  - Spray Foam, Flat roof
4. Checklist – Conveyancing
  - Boundaries
  - Access
  - Flying freeholds
5. Checklist – Health and Safety
  - Asbestos
  - Damp
  - Infestations
  - Trees
6. Checklist – Risks to the Property
  - Structural
  - Services
  - Fire
  - Falls
7. Environmental, Climate Change, Renewables
  - Flooding
  - Subsidence
  - Heat Stress
  - Physical Damage: from extreme weather events
  - Renewable Energy Sources (PV, Solar, Wind, Heat Pumps)
8. General Photographs
  - General view photographs to show matters of the property – these are not defect or observation images.
  - Categories:
    - Elevations
    - Grounds
    - Internal Rooms
    - Services
9. External Elements
  - Observation or Defect photographs – showing matters for your attention covering:
    - Chimneys, Roof Coverings, External Walls, Soffits/Fascias, Rainwater goods, Windows, External Doors, Conservatories and Porches, plus any Common and Shared Areas.
10. Internal Elements
  - Observation or Defect photographs – showing matters for your attention covering:
    - Roof Structure, Ceilings, Internal Walls, Floors, Chimney Breasts, Stairs Doors and Joinery, Kitchen Fittings, Bathroom Fittings, any Loft Conversions, any Basements and cellars, plus any Common and Shared Areas.
11. Services
  - Observation or Defect photographs – showing matters for your attention covering:
    - Electricity and Lighting, Gas, Water, Heating, Drainage (surface and foul water).
12. Grounds
  - Observation or Defect photographs – showing matters for your attention covering:
    - Garages, Outbuildings, Paths, Hardstanding and Boundaries, Other Surfaces, Boundaries, plus any Common and Shared Areas.
13. Large Diagrams
  - Additional images presented full screen to display plans or diagrams – where relevant.

Condition Ratings

The following condition ratings have been assigned to elements within the property to highlight the current condition:
- 1 Minor or cosmetic repairs, or no repairs at all, are currently needed though the element should be maintained in the normal way.
- 1a Minor or cosmetic repairs, or no repairs at all, are currently needed though the element is likely to require an above average level of maintenance.
- 2 Repairs or replacements are needed but these are not considered to be serious or urgent.
- 3 Defects are present which are either serious and/or require urgent repair or replacement, or further investigation is required to determine the exact nature of repairs required.
- C Indicates a matter that should be highlighted to the conveyancer for investigation.
- NI Not inspected. Indicates an element of the property that could not be inspected due to some restriction of access or view, or by previous arrangement.
- NA Not applicable – this element is not present at the property or is included within another section of the report.
- HS These are actual or potential health and safety risks which require urgent certification and/or inspection to confirm their safety.

Sample Report

View a sample Home Insight Survey report to see the format and detail provided:

Sample Home Insight Survey (PDF)

Service Video

Areas covered: We carry out level 3 Building Surveys and level 2 Homebuyers surveys in Portsmouth, Southampton and Chichester areas.

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