Should I get a damp survey before buying?

Buying a home is the biggest purchase most people ever make, and damp is one of the most common and most negotiable defects found in London's older housing stock. A specialist survey before exchange tells you exactly what you're taking on.

When it's clearly worth it

• Your RICS Level 2 or 3 survey flagged 'high moisture readings' and recommended further investigation
• The lender's valuation imposed a retention pending a damp and timber report
• You can see staining, tide marks, mould, or smell mustiness at viewings
• The property is Victorian or Edwardian with no evidence of a working damp proof course
• There's a basement, cellar, or below-ground room

What you get

A precise diagnosis of any damp or timber problems, what fixing them will genuinely cost, and a lender- and solicitor-friendly report you can rely on, usually turned around fast enough to fit exchange deadlines. Armed with that, you can proceed with confidence, renegotiate with evidence, or walk away from a money pit. Compared with the sums at stake, the survey fee is a rounding error.