Seller-side surveys
The seller wants to repair the gutter before you exchange and asks you not to reduce the price. What written record of that repair would the survey still not supervise?
The survey would still not supervise any written record of that gutter repair. The seller wants to do the work and asks you not to reduce the price. A later invoice, a photograph or a note from their contractor would be their record. This inspection does not watch the repair, sign it off, or rewrite itself when they say it is done. The original note about the gutter stays what was seen on the day. It does not become a completion certificate.
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?
Sellers often prefer to repair rather than move on price. That choice is a negotiation, not a change to what the surveyor already wrote. What you would still lack from the survey is supervision: confirmation that the gutter fitted is the one the report was about, that the leak path was actually closed, and that the work matches the finding. Their paperwork can exist. The surveyor has not stood under the eaves while it was done and has not been asked to.
Ask the solicitor to collect whatever record the seller is willing to give, and to keep it separate from the survey. If the repair matters, have the finished gutter looked at again rather than treating an invoice as the surveyor's sign-off. Do not drop the gutter finding solely because a repair was promised. The survey will not supervise that promise, and a request not to reduce the price does not edit the report.
What should you ask your surveyor?
- Will you supervise, or reinspect, a gutter repair the seller carries out later?
- What written record of that repair will the original survey not be?
- Does a request to leave the price alone change the gutter finding?
What are the typical next steps?
- Keep the seller's repair record separate from the survey.
- Ask the solicitor to hold whatever paperwork the seller provides.
- Have the finished gutter looked at again if you need it checked.
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
If the seller sends a photo of a new gutter, has the survey approved it?
No. A photograph is the seller's record. The survey still has not supervised the repair and has not compared the new gutter with the leak it reported. You can look at the photo as information. You cannot file it as the surveyor's completion note. A second look is a different instruction.
Does leaving the price unchanged prove the gutter is no longer a defect?
No. Price is the negotiation the seller has asked for. It does not supervise the repair and it does not delete the original finding. Until the work is done and, if you need it, looked at again, the survey's gutter note remains a note about the day of the inspection, not a certificate that the eaves are finished.