Whether you are selling your property in Brixton, or buying a new one, you will need to have surveys and valuations done on the house before any contracts are signed and any final agreements are made. A survey is a complete check over the property to value it, and ensure it is in a liveable state, it will highlight any problems with the property, or potential problematic areas, and will give a buyer a good indication as to how much work needs to be carried out on the property. There are different types of surveys, the two main ones you need to familiarise yourself with: 1.    Homebuyers report A homebuyers report is ideal for properties that are in good condition and are relatively new, i.e. have been built within the last 100 years, the property needs to be of a smaller size, less than 2000 square foot.  This survey is a report that is supposed to give you a snapshot of the property at that specific point in time, summarising the condition of the house and highlighting anything that is or could go wrong with the property.  The report notes information on the following:•    The condition of the property and any problems it has regardless of how major or minor they are.•    Repairs that should be made on the property, giving you a better idea what this will cost. •    If there are any problems such as damp or woodworm, or any damaged caused to walls and/or woodwork from things like rodent infestation this will be highlighted.•    Whether the property has any insulation and/or damp-proofing.•    What it could potentially cost if something should happen to the property that means it needs completely re-building. •    A valuation indicating what the property is valued at.•    Anything that is of concern and requires further investigation outside of the surveyors area of expertise will be highlighted, you should make sure you hire someone to investigate further for you. 2.    Building SurveyA building survey is much more detailed and thorough than a homebuyers report and as a result of this it may take much more time to complete. Because of the depth a surveyor will need to investigate your property and the expertise needed for this, building surveys are often the most expensive of all the reports you can have done. As with a homebuyers report, the building survey will give you a good idea as to what condition the property is in, furthermore if the surveyor that you use is approved by your mortgage provider you may be able to use the building survey instead of getting a mortgage valuation completed. If you do want to do this, you should ensure you mention this to the surveyor before they start the building survey, as valuations are not typically included in these reports.  What you can expect to find in a building survey:•    Details about what condition the property is in.•    Any repairs that need to be made to the property.•    A dampness testing report.•    A woodworm testing report.•    A note on what insulation and damp-proofing the property has and what condition it is in.•    Information regarding the construction of the house, when it was built, what it was built with etc. •    Information about the area that the property is situated in.•    A note on anything the surveyor would like you to have further checked.The price of the surveys depend on which survey you want and the price of the property, unfortunately for you, when you buy or sell a home in Brixton there is no avoiding surveyors fees.