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An environmental search is a crucial part of the conveyancing process when buying a house. Often required by mortgage lenders, this search looks at the historical records of your property and the surrounding area, to assess past use and identify potential risks associated with the land on which the house is built.
What is an environmental search?
Environmental searches look at whether the property you are purchasing is built on or near contaminated land or water. It should also pick up any issues such as the risk of potential landslips or flooding from nearby rivers, seas or lakes
Why is an environmental search important?
All conveyancing searches are important as they make you aware of potential issues with your purchase before legal ownership is transferred. An environmental search is important as the provide the below information:
1. Health risks
As environmental searches look at the past use of the land, they can highlight certain factors which could potentially become a serious health risk to you and those living in the house. If the house is built on former industrial land, for example, there could be toxic substances still remaining in the ground.
2. Insurance risks
The environmental search also indicates whether the property has had any historical issues with flooding. If there are any flooding issues, you may struggle to get buildings insurance, or you may have to pay a premium.
3. Financial risks
Buying a property is one of the biggest financial commitments you can make. If there is anything which could cause you to lose money on this investment, spend money to rectify issues or leave you unable to sell in the future, it’s important to understand this upfront.
It’s also important to note that if the original party responsible for any contamination cannot be found, the cost for all clean-up activities will sit with the landowner.
An environmental search can uncover natural factors that may impact your property’s value, such as risks from flooding, subsidence, or invasive plants. Discover the key natural forces that could affect your home and how to address them in our comprehensive article.
What does an environmental search look for?
An environmental search report will cover:
Contamination to the land
Flood risk
Ground stability (i.e. subsidence risk)
Historical coal mining
Radon gas
Energy and infrastructure (e.g. power stations, wind or solar farms)
Development constraints
How long does an environmental search take?
An environmental search usually takes around one to two weeks to complete. However, it could take longer if additional information is needed from a specialist body or there are delays due to high demand in the property market.
What other conveyancing searches will I need?
There are other conveyancing searches you will need to get when buying a house such as a local authority search and a land registry search. All of which a conveyancer will take you through.
For more information on how long conveyancing searches take, who pays for them and the process of dealing with the enquiries, read our conveyancing searches guide.
Who pays for the searches when selling a house?
The cost of conveyancing searches, including the environmental search, is something that the buyer must pay for and then owns. Most searches now are insurance backed in case the search provider has made an error (which is incredibly rare), so the buyer will have the benefit of this as well.
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