Stage 4 of Buying a House | Property Searches Ordered

What are Property Searches?

Property searches are searches that we order on your behalf from third parties to obtain information about the property you are purchasing and its surrounding area. The searches that we order are:

• Local Authority search
• Water and Drainage search
• Environmental search
• Highway

In some circumstances, we may carry our further searches such as mining searches, land charges and chancel repair searches. If these are necessary for your property, we will let you know.

ABOUT PROPERTY SEARCHES

LOCAL AUTHORITY SEARCHES

Local Authority searches tell us if:

• The property is listed
• The property is in a conversation or tree preservation area
• An improvement or renovation grant is required
• The property is in a smoke control area
• There are currently any existing proposals for new roads or traffic schemes
• Any of the nearby land is contaminated
• There are any planning decisions affecting your property
• There are any building regulations you need to be aware of
• The property is in an area affected by Radon

ENVIRONMENTAL SEARCHES

Environmental searches highlight any environmental impacts that may affect the property such as:

• Landslides
• Subsidence
• An old landfill contaminating the local land
• Flood risks

MINING SEARHCES

Mining searches give us a report on:

• Mine entries within 20 metres of the property’s boundaries
• Gas emissions from coal mines
• Other coal mining hazards reported in the area
• Plans for future coal mining in the area

WATER & DRAINAGE SEARCHES

Water & Drainage searches tell us:

• Which local water company is responsible for the water and drainage to/from the property
• Any nearby public sewerage networks and whether any of these runs close to the property
• If any of your neighbour’s drainage and sewerage runs through the property

HINTS & TIPS

In some circumstances, we may be required to carry out further searches on the property. If these are necessary, we will let you know. The timeframe for receiving the results of the searches differs depending on the local authority providing the search so we cannot guarantee a fixed timeframe for property searches, but on average we would expect to receive the searches back within 14-21 days.

OUR TO DO LIST

Now that your property searches have been ordered, we will now prepare for your file to be allocated to your Legal TeamOnce your file has been allocated to your Legal Team, a member of the team will be in touch in 4 within 4 working days to introduce themselves to you and answer any questions that you might have.Your Legal Team will review your searches as part of the Contract Pack

YOUR TO DO LIST

You are all caught up! We will be in touch within four working days to answer any questions that you have and explain the next steps.

PROPERTY SEARCHES FAQs

DO I NEED PROPERTY SEARCHES?

If you are taking out a mortgage, property searches will usually be a requirement from the lender. If you are a cash buyer, then property searches aren’t a requirement, but we always strongly recommend that you take out property searches and a survey. Together, these precautions will help to mitigate the risk of running into unsuspected issues later down the line.

WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN PROPERTY SEARCHES AND A PROPERTY SURVEY?

Property searches investigate the area surrounding a property, as well as anything external that could impact the property such as landfills, abandoned mines and flooding.A property survey, however, involves someone called a Surveyor coming to the property and investigating the structure and build of the property. They will look for things like damp, unstable walls and subsidence. They will highlight any major repairs or alterations that are needed on the property such as fixing the roofing or chimney.Please note that searches are not the same as a property search.

HOW LONG DO PROPERTY SEARCHES TAKE?

Typically, we expect to get a response to property searches within 14-21 days. However, this can vary from council to council, if we receive your searches back any sooner, then we will of course continue to proceed with your purchase immediately.WHAT DO PROPERTY SEARCHES LOOK AT?The property searches that we will typically order are:

• Local Authority searches
• Water and Drainage searches
• Environmental searches

Once the property searches have been ordered we will allocate your file to your Legal Team who will be in touch in 4 working days.