Your Options After a Bad Survey
When your survey reveals significant problems, you typically have four options:
1. Renegotiate the Price
The most common response. Use the survey findings to negotiate a price reduction that reflects the cost of necessary repairs. Your surveyor's report — particularly if it includes cost estimates — provides the evidence base for this negotiation.
Read our guide to negotiating after a survey →
2. Ask the Seller to Fix Issues
For specific, well-defined defects (such as a leaking roof or faulty electrics), you can ask the seller to carry out repairs before completion. This is less common but can work for targeted issues.
3. Proceed With Full Knowledge
If the defects are manageable and you have budgeted for repairs, you may choose to proceed at the agreed price. The survey still adds value — you now have a clear maintenance plan and no surprises.
4. Walk Away
For serious issues — subsidence, major structural failure, prohibitive repair costs — walking away is sometimes the right decision. Better to lose the survey fee than commit to a money pit.
What Problems Are Most Serious?
- Subsidence or structural movement — can cost £10,000–£50,000+ to underpin and may affect insurance
- Significant damp penetration — indicates failing waterproofing that requires comprehensive treatment
- Roof failure — a full re-roof can cost £5,000–£15,000 or more
- Japanese knotweed — affects property value, mortgageability, and requires professional treatment
- Asbestos-containing materials — management or removal can be costly, especially in extensions and outbuildings
Browse our full property problems guide →
Does Every Survey Find Problems?
Almost every survey identifies some issues — that is the point. Most are routine maintenance items rather than deal-breakers. The value of a survey is in distinguishing between minor wear and serious defects that affect safety, value, or your long-term costs.
Talk to Your Surveyor
A good surveyor will discuss the findings with you and help you understand which issues are priorities and which are manageable. At Survey.London, every report includes a post-survey call with your chartered surveyor to answer questions and clarify recommendations.