Land contamination

[amy30]

We are in the process of buying a house and we've found that there is a possibility of land contamination. The report is very vague so we are not sure what to do next. Does anyone have any advice? Would this put you off when buying a house? We are concerned that this may affect resale in the future.

[AbDabs]

What sort of land contamination? It makes a huge difference.

[KidKruger]

if the report is very vague then it's a shite report. presumably from a surveyor ? they lead the field in vague reports that they will not commit to, every comment being back-tracked by the next.

Surely it's the vendor's problem, no need to make it yours. tell them your concerns and ask them for a survey report, which the surveyor is prepared to stand by, confirming no contamination.

[The Minkey]

I had a possible land contamination report when I got my place surveyed. It was due to proximity to Camberwell New Cemetery. Didn't put me off and there have been several sales in my road since I've lived here. Is there any indication where the contamination originates and what it might be? For example, houses built on the site of an old petrol station would classify as being built on contaminated land.

[Loz]

In my limited experience, there are really crap, vague surveys and then there are the professional, properly written ones.

The first type you generally get from the people you get via the mortgage provider - the ones that do the valuation, but you can 'trade up' to the housebuyers report. These are generally 90% cut and paste jobs with a few details filled in. My last one was so bad they even counted the number of rooms incorrectly! I complained, got my money back and got another one done via a friend's recommended surveyor.

Go through a specialist surveyor and get a proper one. It'll cost a hundred quid or so more, but since the vague ones are essentially worthless then it's money well spent.

If you need a recommendation, PM me and I'll see if I can dig out the details.