I am considering buying a property on the silver coast on lake Zurich. We are now in final stage.
Is there among the group a builder or an expert in the field that would be happy these days before NYE to come and visit the flat with us again to ensure there are no obvious bad surprises?
Or a recommendation for someone to contact.
Free would be nice as we are all mustachians but happy to remunerate accordingly.
Thanks!
Congrats on taking this preventive step to make sure that you get to notice any potential defect in the property youâre buying.
While a civil engineer, Iâm not working on buildings and am not qualified to help you with this purchase. I would suggest hireing an @Architect or an HVAC specialist/electrician (ideally both) to do the visit with you, the price of a few hours of their time should be easily compensated by the problems they might spot, plus youâd already be in touch with them if/when you need a specialist for repairs.
If none show up here, Iâd contact a local professional directly.
Whishing you success in this endeavour.
Thank you Wolverine (great nickname by the way)!
Also a real estate lawyer could be helpful. He / she could help with a first valuation and helps us through the process.
Does anyone recommend this? And specific person / agency
Thanks for the shout-out @Wolverine !
I subscribe what was said before because the working conditions of the technical equipment are quite important as well as its life expectancy/maintenance (planned long term service charges and expected major repairs).
Itâs not easy to post here a long checklist, but there are visible and hidden/invisible elements to take into account and this depends on the date of construction⊠Scout for hairline cracks, quality of joints and seals⊠an overall construction quality is important. Related to the âinvisibleâ, if itâs a collective housing block, consider spend some time during the day to be sure that acoustic insulation will give you the quietness you expect (or why not asking your future neighbours?). This is very personal, but I value natural light conditions therefore orientation is fundamental. Iâm not necessarily referring to direct sunlight all day long, but different light conditions accordingly to the living spaces will provide rich atmospheres.
If you planned to repair or re-do some rooms, take into account that certain materials can be 15-30% more expensive in the near future.
Best wishes to 2022.
This. Extremely important, also if you are just renting. Do you have any tips to evaluate this? When visiting an apartment it is hard to know if the neighborâs TV can be heard while youâre trying to sleep⊠I have moved recently to a rented apartment and noise from neighbors is something I hadnât heard while visiting but that is rendering my life quite miserable in here. I even wonder if it can be considered a defect that was not visible during the visit therefore entitling me to a rent reduction!
BTW, do you offer your services in Suisse Romande? 
Hi @Ed_Waadt !
An acoustic engineer could certainly answer much much much better than me 
but consider that sound travels through air and through different mediums, activating particules differently: airborne sounds and impact sounds. Between high and low pitched sounds, probably you hear much more the low frequency sounds of your neighboursâ TV because they penetrate better the wall or the floor between appartements. As a way to improve acoustic insulation you would need to add more layers (including non rigid insulation and service cavity). The composition with materials of different masses/densities would absorb a broader spectre of sounds and provide more peaceful evenings 
Iâm maybe simplifying things a bit too much for the sake of clarity, but any acoustic engineer can do the maths and dimension all these layers.
Impact sounds are also a common issue - related to vibrations that are transferred through materials (i.e. kids that âgentlyâ run and jump around all day long - like kids are supposed to do). These situations are can be solved during the construction phase with good details (i.e. isolate structural elements, use acoustic sealants, non-rigid connections, in order to break the pathway that allows the transmission of impact noises).
Iâm not sure youâre entitle to a rent reduction⊠I guess you wouldnât be an isolated case.
Have you tried to talk with your neighbour? Sometimes one doesnât realise how much noise passes through the walls⊠TV flat screens usually have the speakers againsât the wall at the back which wouldnât help in your case.
And⊠oui! 
Yes, ongoing projects and work mainly in Suisse Romande at the moment. 