Member Article

Silverstone survey high-end residential properties

A North East Building Consultancy firm who specialise in building surveying and project management services for the commercial property market have diversified into high value residential property surveys.

Silverstone Building Consultancy has been given several referrals to carry out pre-acquisition surveys on a number of exclusive residential properties ranging in value from £650,000 to £1.2 million in a variety of desirable locations throughout the North East.

They have acted on behalf of some well known individuals in the local business community including chef and restaurateur, Terry Laybourne and Helen Barbour, Vice Chair of the clothing retailer, Barbour.

There are three types of home surveys regulated by the RICS, a simple valuation report to confirm the value of the property, a home buyer’s report, which is a more detailed condition report suitable for those buying a conventional house, flat or bungalow in reasonable condition or a full building survey. The latter is the only one which must be carried out by a Chartered Building Surveyor and provides a full picture of the building’s construction and condition.

A full building survey is particularly recommended when the property is of high value, dilapidated, of unusual construction, has been significantly altered or where a major conversion or renovation is planned. The resulting report includes details of the whole range of defects, major to minor.

Ben Hunter, Director of Silverstone commented: ‘Although we specialise in the commercial property market we were directly approached by a number of individuals through word of mouth referrals to carry out residential surveys. We were able to apply our skills and experience of surveying high value commercial properties to these residential properties. This entailed producing detailed reports on their condition and identifying any issues that presented a risk to the client, making them aware of maintenance issues prior to purchase.’

Helen Barbour commented: ‘Silverstone were extremely helpful when we asked them to survey our potential new house. They provided a comprehensive report which was in simple layman’s terms so that we could follow it, but furthermore they offered to coordinate further investigations that arose from the report at very little cost to us. We found them particularly flexible and accommodating to my busy schedule.’

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