The old adage ‘you get what you pay for’ is largely true in pretty much all scenarios. That being said, knowing what you need is not always easy to see without knowing the ins and outs of what is on offer. There is a simple answer to this question though: the cost of a snagging survey should be related to the scope of the work required. For that, you can expect the service to be charged at an amount per square foot of the area to be inspected.
When asking this question, you should consider the cost of not carrying out a comprehensive inspection. After all, whether you are an experienced and seasoned purchaser or a first-time buyer, you definitely don’t want to be footing a myriad of bills for repairs and remedial work that you just simply could not predict at the time of making the purchase. In some cases, having a full condition report can lead to some serious negotiating power to lower the purchase price or, in more extreme cases, give you the opportunity to steer clear of a potential money pit.
When buying a property in the UAE, you are going to enter into a Sale and Purchase agreement. This is a committed offer to purchase that is binding and which requires a deposit to be put down that will be forfeit if you do not proceed. In this agreement, you can place conditions under which you and the seller agree the offer can be withdrawn. One condition that is often missed is insisting on a satisfactory independent inspection report.
This would mean that the offer is contingent on the property being in good condition and should allow you to renegotiate the offer or even withdraw if the report highlights issues that you are not comfortable with.
If you forgo the opportunity to have the property properly inspected, you run the risk of being stuck in a purchase at a price that no longer seems or is reasonable.
Snagging services and inspections are not limited to private sales and are an important consideration when buying ‘off plan’ or directly from a developer on a new build. Even the most reputable builders in the UAE are not infallible and it is not uncommon for brand new properties to have teething troubles. This is the reason that there is a handover inspection and a sort of warranty (usually one year) under which the developer is required to ‘put right’ any outstanding issues.
Unless you have the expertise and equipment to fully inspect the property, it is unlikely you will be able to identify potential issues and could miss the opportunity to have (often costly) works carried out by the developer.
As the actual cost of an inspection or survey is directly related to the individual property you are looking to purchase, why not contact Majlis Property Services and find out exactly how much your inspection would cost. The long and short of it will be, the potential cost of not having an inspection is likely to be far greater than the known cost and peace of mind in carrying out a comprehensive inspection to protect your investment and potential assets.
