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Seller-side surveys

What should a seller in England gather that is not another survey?

Guarantees, building-regulations certificates, window and electrical paperwork, boiler services, and any damp or timber guarantees they actually have. An EPC is required when marketing, and GOV.UK says an EPC is valid for 10 years. An EPC is not a survey. A seller in England is not required to commission a home survey before marketing. Scotland is different: a Home Report is part of most sales.

Last reviewed 24 October 2026. Written for buyers in England and Wales unless this answer says otherwise. No named surveyor has signed this page. It is general guidance, not a report on your house, and not legal advice.

What is the fuller explanation?

Papers do not cure a rotten window, but they stop a buyer’s solicitor treating every improvement as unauthorised. Lay them out before the buyer’s surveyor arrives so the inspection is not spent hunting for a cylinder certificate. The surveyor is not obliged to read a box of unsorted manuals.

Do not pay for a second structural survey “to beat the buyer to it” unless you want one for your own pricing. Their surveyor is instructed by them. Your copy, if they give you nothing, is not something you can demand under the English system the way a Scottish seller provides a Home Report.

What should you ask your surveyor?

  • Which papers do you want left out for the inspection?
  • Are you doing a survey for me, or am I only preparing for theirs?
  • Is the EPC current? That is not your question to invent.

What are the typical next steps?

  1. Sort certificates by element: roof, windows, electrics, heating, alterations.
  2. Get the EPC in place because marketing rules require it, not because it replaces a survey.
  3. Do not hide a known leak. Say so. A buyer’s surveyor will see the stain anyway.

Costs vary with the building and with who you instruct. Where this page does not cite a published figure, ask the surveyor, a relevant specialist, or your solicitor for a written quote. Do not treat a forum average as the price.

Also asked about this

Should a seller repaint before the survey?

Cosmetic paint is your choice. Painting over active damp is a good way to lose trust when the meter and the smell remain. Do not do it to deceive.

Does a seller’s own Level 2 bind the buyer?

No. In England the buyer did not instruct it. They may ignore it. Reliance is a legal question. Assume they will instruct their own.

Sources