When selling my own property,What Searches are carried out and why? - In the Uk, when you now sell a property, you are obliged to provide information regarding your property that is not just about the physical structure. Most of this information is now provided to the buyer within the form of a Home Information Pack (HIP). However, ’searches’ is a term loosely used by conveyancers and estate agents. Here is a brief explanation of some of the searches involved in a property sale:
Local authority search - If there is a Home Information Pack (HIP) this search will be included in it. This search reveals details of matters such as the planning history, proposals for new road schemes, planning breaches, tree
preservation orders, conservation areas and other matters over which the council have control and may affect the enjoyment or value of the property. Your mortgage lender (if any) will require you to have one of these.