Should we visit before completion?

[Anonymous]

We’ve just been given the 1st of June by our solicitor for completion on our townhouses. When we started to look at the flights, car hire and accommodation etc it was going to more expensive than we initially thought to fly over due to short notice for the flights.

We have seen the first occupation licence which has been signed off.

We have also asked the agents we bought through to do a snagging list. I know a quick snagging run-through is not a survey but then neither would our visit be the equivalent of hiring a surveyor. Have any of you done this prior to completion?

In a month’s time when the utilties are connected we shall drive down and live in the properties alternately so they will be well road-tested by us then prior to hopefully renting them out.

Does this seem madness? Our rationale is 1) believing the building inspector would not sign something off which has been built incorrectly. 2) we have the equivalent of the NHBC, (10 year structural guarantee) if something was structurally wrong and 3) if we did visit and find a problem perhaps the developer would insist we sign or cause us to default on the contract if we didn’t, so we wouldn’t gain by our inspection anyway.

Thoughts would be appreciated. I’ll also post on the Settling-In forum.
Many thanks.

Allyson

[Anonymous]

Before making a final decision ask your agent to visit and send external photos of the building and internal photos of each room. He should be able to email these to you straight away. This is a service we have offered our clients several times.

[Anonymous]

Hi,

Are you not going to be present to sign the escituria? Would you not have time to view the property first? Or is it possible to delay the completion date by a few weeks?

Personally, if I was parting with my money I’d want to see things at every stage..yes it maybe expensive to fly over but from feedback on this forum, it seems that once people have your money theres not a lot you can do about any problems!!

Good luck, I hope it alls gos very smoothly for you what ever you decide!

Heather

[Anonymous]

Hi Heather

No, we were going to let the solicitors sign for us. We know others in the development have already signed and we have seen quite a lot of photographs of our property.

Essentially, if you could sign one day and have the utilities connected the next it wouldn’t be such a problem. But to have to wait 2 weeks plus to be connected complicates things, essentially making 2 trips.

Thanks for your response.

Allyson

[mariadecastro]

As a solicitor, I do that work for my clients. I take pictures and send them to the buyer during the construction process. I take the final look on the property before signing the deeds if the client cannot come.

If any deffect appears afterwards there is still time to claim for it ( 1,3 and 10 years) accordiong to the LOE ( General Building Act)

[Anonymous]

Thank you Maria Luisa for your response.

I have the company we bought through doing a snagging list and then we will be inspecting for ourselves in a few weeks’ time.

Kind regards.
Allyson

[Author]

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