House build in Scotland - do I need a solicitor?

[FraserK]

We're in the process of negotiating the purchase of a plot of land and a house build on the Isle of Mull, Scotland. We have already appointed a solicitor to deal with the purchase of the plot from the builder, there will be a separate build contract for the construction of the house from the same builder. There is no mortgage.

 

Is there any benefit of employing a solicitor for the build contract? The build contract will be in stage payments and the finished build will be subject to an NHBC warranty and building control will be 'signing off' on the various stages.

 

As the solicitor will no doubt insist in the appointment of an independent surveyor to inspect the build at the various stages. Appears to me to be additional expense for no tangible benefit?

 

 

[Jilly]

I haven't done that, I don't think many people have. Not everyone even has a written contract with the builder...

[Ralph]

I've not used one but I did use this contract https://www.scottishbuildingcontracts.com/contracts/37/minor-works-building-contract-with-contractor-s-design-for-use-in-scotland/ and had my architect administrate it. 

[Bozza]

A solicitor would probably only advise you to make sure you have a proper contract and the build is supervised by an architect or subject to a build warranty.  Which you have.  And the local authority Building standards should be checking on the build at stages too.

 

You could in theory pay for another tier of inspection by a surveyor but there is always a certain element of risk when building anything.  Surveyors would always report that something “appears” in order, as to reduce the risk of litigation of something going wrong.  For example they wouldn’t be testing the correct concrete has been used I the foundations.

 

 Your risk is mitigated significantly if your chosen builder is reputable and well known, vetted etc.

 

Do you have specific worries about your builder or are you just looking to reduce the risks as much as possible.
 

Don’t forget those horror stories of mainstream big house builders building terrible houses with loads of faults.  If you have a vetted and reputable Local builder the risks I would argue are less.
 

only thing I would advise is to make sure 100% that the quote and contract etc is all inclusive and you are certain what you could or not be asked to pay extra for.    Make sure there isn’t any dubiety whatsoever.

 

 

[FraserK]

Thanks for your replies everyone, very helpful. The builder has a very good reputation, there's no specific concerns as it's a small-scale development.