A practical guide to organising and recording inspections of an inherited home during professional estate administration.
Hermens Property · London and Surrey
Our role is to help executors make informed decisions about the property, its condition and the work needed before a sale or handover. Every instruction is tailored to the property, with contractor costs and any Hermens coordination fee explained before work is authorised.
01
Unoccupied-property insurers can require particular intervals, heating or water precautions, access or security arrangements. The personal representatives and their advisers should obtain the actual policy terms; a generic inspection frequency should never be assumed to meet them.
02
A trust corporation can be a separate legal entity from the solicitor's practice. Confirm the person entitled to instruct Hermens, the estate reference, legal authority, spending limits, emergency contacts and any third parties permitted access.
03
An agreed visual visit can note external doors and windows, visible damage, obvious water issues, grounds, keyholding and readily accessible internal areas. Record when and by whom the visit occurred, what could not be checked and refer to dated photographs.
04
Reports should distinguish an urgent concern from a routine observation and identify actions needing approval. Contractor access, additional visits or repairs should be authorised in writing under the agreed instruction and expenditure controls.
05
Where a professional executor administers several properties, a portfolio schedule can list each estate's visit dates, outstanding action items and reporting contacts while retaining confidential records separately for each matter.
06
A routine visual visit is not a structural survey, gas or electrical safety test or confirmation that every insurance condition has been fulfilled. Insurance outcomes depend on the policy terms and the circumstances of any claim. Hermens provides practical property oversight, not insurer certification.
Tell us the address, who is authorised to instruct work and what needs attention. We can discuss the relevant services and agree a sensible sequence, whether you need one quotation or coordinated preparation for a sale.
Hermens provides property-related services, not probate legal advice, reserved probate work or legal estate administration. Where a formal tax valuation, regulated advice or specialist work is needed, an appropriately qualified independent professional should be appointed.
