Understanding Property Searches: Your Guide to Ensuring a Secure Home Purchase

Yellow arrow
This UKMC guide explains what property searches are, why they are important, and how they can offer peace of mind to home buyers.
Property Searches

Buying a new property is a major investment, and conducting crucial property searches is essential for a smooth, issue-free purchase.

In this blog, we’ll delve into four key search types: Local Authority, Environmental, Water & Drainage, and Land Registry. Understanding these searches will boost your confidence in your home buying journey.

Local Authority Searches

Local Authority searches offer insights into planning, building control, highways, rail projects, and pollution concerns. They help ensure your property isn’t near disruptive construction sites or highways. They also reveal if the property is listed, in a conservation area, or subject to tree preservation orders, keeping you informed about the community.

Environmental Searches

Environmental searches focus on crucial factors such as flooding risks, potential landslides, subsidence issues, and contaminated land. In today’s world, where climate change and environmental awareness are significant concerns, these searches ensure that your prospective home is not prone to flooding or built on unstable ground. They also identify any nearby gas hazards or unsightly landfill sites that could impact the property’s desirability.

Water and Drainage Searches

Water and Drainage searches investigate the connection of your future home to a reliable public water supply and efficient sewer system. These searches are crucial in a time where water scarcity is a growing concern. They verify that your property has access to the necessary resources for modern living and reveal the location of public sewers and drainage pipes. This information helps prevent accidental damage to mainlines during any future home extensions and ensures hassle-free showers and functional plumbing.

Land Registry Searches

Land Registry searches provide a digital certificate of property ownership. These searches verify the legitimacy of the current owner’s claim to the property, offering assurance and evidence for your transaction. By conducting this search, you can have peace of mind knowing that your investment is supported by solid documentation and backed by trusted property records.

By conducting these searches, you gain valuable information about the property’s surroundings, potential risks, plumbing systems, and ownership status.

Discover more and download our first time buyer guide for FREE

Disclaimer

UK Mortgage Centre Limited is an Appointed Representative of Refresh Mortgage Network Limited. Refresh Mortgage Network Limited is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. We are entered on the Financial Services Register under firm number 1019794.

As a mortgage is secured against your home, it could be repossessed if you do not keep up the mortgage repayments. The Financial Conduct Authority does not regulate some forms of buy-to-let mortgages.

The Financial Conduct Authority does not regulate will writing and taxation and trust advice.

You may be charged a fee for your advice. A typical fee is £495, which would be payable when you receive your mortgage offer. Your dedicated advisor will discuss this further on your free initial phone call.

Registered company number: 15825320

Share

Related articles

What happens if you can’t afford to remortgage - UKMC

If rising interest rates are making you feel anxious about what’s going to happen when you come to remortgage, then don’t worry – you’re not

Can you remortgage to build an extension - UKMC

Eager to find out whether you can (or should!) remortgage to build an extension? At UKMC, our friendly team of mortgage experts have helped countless

First-time buyer mortgage with no credit history - UKMC

Unsure how a lack of credit history could affect your home-purchasing journey as a first-time buyer? Regardless of whether you’re worried or simply curious, the

Remortgaging on maternity leave - UKMC

Among the primary reasons a homeowner wants to remortgage while on maternity leave is to benefit from better interest rates. When a new baby arrives,

How much is stamp duty for first-time buyers - UKMC

Buying a house for the first time can seem daunting, especially if you’re unsure what you’re letting yourself in for. After all, there’s a lot

How much can first-time buyers borrow - UKMC

Struggling to understand how much a lender will allow you to borrow as a first-time buyer? While there’s many factors that lenders will assess when

Download your Guide to mortgage rates and types

Download your Insurance Guide

Download your Lifetime Mortgages guide

Download your Buy to Let Guide

Download your Document Checklist

Download your Home Viewing Checklist

Download your Home Moving Guide

Download your Remortgages Guide

Download your First Time Buyers Guide

Household income:

Deposit:

You can borrow up to:

Fill in the form below to secure your agreement in principle:

×