House viewing checklist
Built for the walk-round itself: the questions an agent won't volunteer, and the things that only show up if you actually open the cupboard.
25 items
Makes your own editable copy. No account needed.
The items
- Outside firstRoofline, guttering, brickwork and any patch of newer-looking repair, before anyone starts talking to you.
- Walls checked for cracks and their pattern
- Hairline cracks in plaster — common and usually cosmetic
- Stepped cracks in brickwork — worth asking about directly
- Signs of damp
- Musty smell in cupboards and behind furniture
- Discoloured patches near ceilings and skirting
- One patch of a wall with noticeably fresher paint
- Every tap runPressure and how long the hot takes tells you more about the plumbing than the listing does.
- Every window and door opened and closedA sticking frame or misted double glazing is a cheap warning, not decoration.
- Mobile signal checked in every room
- Stand still in the quietest room and listenFor traffic, neighbours, a nearby road or a flight path.
- Direction the garden or main windows face asked aboutA north-facing living room is a heating bill nobody mentions in the listing.
- Boiler's age and last service date
- Fuse box looked at for any visible rewiringOld fuse wire still in the consumer unit is a rewire bill in waiting.
- EPC rating and actual winter bills asked about
- Broadband speed available at the address checked
- Somewhere for a bike, pram or bins to actually go
- Why the current owner or tenant is leaving asked outrightThe rehearsed answer tells you little; the pause before it sometimes does.
- Parking arrangements and any permit needed
- Storage noted — loft, cupboards, under-stairs space
- What's included asked plainly
- Appliances, light fittings, curtains
- Anything the current occupants plan to take with them
- Photos and a short video taken of every roomMemory blurs the third viewing of the day into the first.
Makes your own editable copy. No account needed.
Questions people ask
- What should I check before I even go inside?
- Walk around the outside first — the roofline, guttering, brickwork and any patch of newer-looking repair. Problems on the outside are cheaper to spot than to discover later.
- Is it worth a second viewing?
- Almost always, and at a different time of day if you can manage it. A quiet street at 11am and the same street at 6pm are sometimes not the same street.
- What questions does an agent not volunteer?
- Why the current owner or tenant is actually leaving, what the real winter bills were, and what's included versus what's being taken. Ask directly.