Questions to Ask the Seller
The questions that change what a property is worth to you.
Free, no sign-up. 6 sections. Edit it to fit your own transaction.
The answers to a handful of questions move the price more than anything visible at a viewing. How long it has been listed, why the seller is moving, what has already fallen through, and what the property costs to run each year are all things the seller knows and you do not.
Recording the answers, with the date and who gave them, matters as much as asking. An answer given verbally at a viewing and contradicted later in the legal paperwork is a material discovery, and you will only notice if you wrote the first version down.
The listing
How long has the property been on the market
Has the asking price changed, and when
Have there been offers, and why did they not proceed
Is the property being marketed anywhere else, or with another agent
Is the seller open to offers, and is there a figure they would accept today
The seller position
Why is the seller moving
Have they found somewhere, and is there a chain above them
What timescale would suit them for exchange and completion
Would a faster completion be worth a lower price to them
Is anyone else living at the property who would need to move out
The building
What major work has been done, and in what year
Is there paperwork, warranty or approval for that work
How old is the roof covering, the heating system and the wiring
Has the property ever flooded, or suffered subsidence or structural movement
Have there been insurance claims on the property
Are there any ongoing disputes with neighbours or the association
Running costs
Annual property tax or municipal charge
Building insurance premium
Service charge, association fee or maintenance levy, and what it covers
Any planned major works already agreed and how they will be funded
Typical annual heating and electricity cost
Ground rent, leasehold or land tenure charges where they apply
Legal and title
What form of ownership is being sold, and how long is left where it is time-limited
Are the boundaries as they appear, and who maintains each one
Are there rights of way, shared drives or access arrangements over the land
Are there restrictions on use, alterations, letting or parking
Is anything about the property unregistered or subject to a pending application
What is included
Which appliances, fittings and floor coverings are included in the price
Which items are specifically excluded
Are any items offered separately, and at what price
Will the property be cleared and cleaned before handover
How to use it
Ask at the viewing, write the answers in the space beside each question, and record the date and the name of whoever answered. Take the completed sheet to your lawyer when the legal enquiries begin.
Compare the answers with the paperwork
Most transactions involve a written seller disclosure at the legal stage. Where a verbal answer and the written form differ, that gap is worth raising immediately — it is either a mistake worth correcting or a fact someone preferred not to write down.
The question that does the most work
"Why are you moving?" is the one worth asking directly of the seller rather than the agent. The answer sets your negotiating position, because a seller with a deadline values certainty and speed far more than the last few percent of price.
Common questions
Will the agent answer these honestly?
Agents act for the seller and in most markets are barred from actively misleading a buyer, but they are not obliged to volunteer what you do not ask. Direct, specific questions get far better answers than open ones.
Is a verbal answer worth anything?
It carries much less weight than a written one, which is exactly why you should record who said what and when. If a written disclosure later contradicts it, you have a documented discrepancy to raise.
When should I ask about running costs?
At the first viewing, before you are emotionally committed. Service charges, association fees and property taxes can differ by thousands a year between apparently similar properties and rarely appear in the listing.
Related templates
Viewing, offering, financing and completing a purchase.
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