The average buyer might look at a property and think they know enough about it to want to buy it. However, many times they would be wrong. There may be a big difference between what they think they are buying and what they are actually buying.
For example, the property appears to be in good condition, and the owner appears to have taken good care of it. What they might not see is that hidden beyond the freshly painted ceiling is a roof that is in desperate need of repair. Or that the appealing open-plan kitchen a previous owner created has resulted in structural weakness because the wall they removed was a supporting wall.
The ground
Another area of concern that issues can occur is the ground the property sits on. Some properties are prone to flooding, landslides or other natural disasters. Some have dangerous gases in the soil that could make living there harmful to health.
The title
Issues with the title are another thing that could also cause a buyer to have second thoughts. Uncovering title issues is imperative, whether it is a mild uncertainty about where the fence line lies or a long-running inheritance battle over ownership of the entire property.
Property owners sometimes know there are issues with what they are selling but conceal them, and sometimes they don’t even realize the problem exists. You can’t just trust them to tell you everything that is wrong with a property – there is too much at stake.
Commissioning a professional survey gives you the best chance of finding all the issues. Inserting appropriate contingency clauses in the contract allows you to back out or renegotiate if the survey discovers faults you were unaware of.