Ask an estate agent about known defects, leaks, damp, structural movement, and repairs, including dates, contractors, invoices, and warranties. Confirm the home’s age, ownership history, previous flooding, subsidence, fires, insurance claims, and any planning restrictions or heritage status. Request recent utility bills, council tax, service charges, maintenance records, and details of major system inspections. Check parking, broadband, transport, local services, crime patterns, and planned developments. Arrange an independent inspection before committing; the sections below cover the questions and documents to verify.

What Should You Ask the Agent About Condition?

Before making an offer, ask the estate agent what they know about the home’s condition, including any defects, repairs, or recurring issues. Request specific details about leaks, damp, cracks, roof wear, drainage, heating, electrical systems, plumbing, and windows.

Ask when problems appeared, what work was completed, who performed it, and whether warranties or invoices are available. Don’t rely on verbal assurances; check Property disclosures and supporting documents, and note any gaps or unanswered questions.

Arrange a Home inspection with a qualified professional before you commit, even if the property looks well maintained. Ask the agent whether the seller will allow access to the loft, basement, outbuildings, and service areas.

Use the inspection report to identify urgent repairs, likely costs, and specialist assessments you may need. Clarify whether the asking price reflects known defects, and factor repair estimates into your offer and budget.

What Should You Ask About the Home’s History?

An inspection can reveal current defects, but the home’s history may explain recurring problems or future risks. Ask your estate agent when the property was built, how many owners it’s had, and how long each owner lived there. Frequent sales or unusually short tenancies may warrant closer research, though they don’t prove a problem.

Ask whether the home has a documented history of flooding, subsidence, fire, or insurance claims, and whether any work followed. Request dates, invoices, warranties, and relevant permits where available. Check Property disclosures against the agent’s answers, and ask who completed the forms and when.

Find out whether the property lies in a conservation area or flood zone, or has heritage status. Your Home inspection can assess present conditions; historical records help you identify risks it may not reveal. Verify key details independently.

Are There Defects, Repairs or Restrictions?

Ask the estate agent to identify known defects, unfinished repairs, and any restrictions that could affect how you use or alter the property. Request copies of Property disclosures, inspection reports, warranties, and invoices for recent work.

Ask whether issues involve the roof, foundations, damp, wiring, plumbing, drainage, or structural movement, and whether specialists have assessed them. Confirm which repairs remain outstanding, who’ll complete them, and whether you can inspect the work before completion.

Check for planning conditions, listed-building status, conservation-area controls, easements, covenants, or lease terms that limit alterations or access.

Clarify Maintenance responsibilities for shared roofs, walls, drains, boundaries, and communal areas.

Don’t rely on verbal assurances: ask the agent to record material answers in writing, then have your solicitor review relevant documents and arrange independent surveys where needed.

What Will the Home Cost to Run?

A home’s purchase price is only part of its cost; ask the agent for recent figures for council tax, energy, water, and other regular charges. Request bills covering a full year, since seasonal use can distort monthly estimates.

Check whether the property’s heating system, insulation, glazing, and energy rating match the quoted utility costs; ask which supplier tariffs or payment plans the figures reflect.

Confirm whether water charges are metered or fixed, and whether any service charges or ground rent apply.

Ask for records of maintenance expenses, including routine servicing, shared-building contributions, and recurring repairs.

Find out when major systems were last inspected and whether planned works could increase your costs.

Compare these figures with your budget, and verify them against bills, certificates, and management documents before you commit to buying the home.

What Should You Ask About the Neighbourhood?

Once you’ve checked the home’s running costs, find out whether the neighbourhood suits your daily routine. Ask the estate agent how far you’ll travel to work, schools, healthcare, public transport, and local amenities. Check journey times at peak hours, not just distances on a map, and ask whether services run reliably in evenings and weekends.

For community safety, ask about recent crime patterns, street lighting, traffic speeds, and any planned changes that could affect noise or access. Treat the agent’s answers as a starting point; verify details with police data, council records, and a visit at different times of day.

Ask about parking rules, waste collection, broadband availability, and proposed developments nearby. These practical checks can reveal recurring costs, disruption, or access limits that could affect your comfort and the property’s future resale appeal. A great, local estate agent will know most of these off the top of their head.