Flags and questions
Flags tell you what's worth checking before you offer. Questions tell you who can answer and when. We only show a flag when the listing or a public record backs it up.
#What a flag means
A flag is something in the listing or the public records worth asking about before you offer. Red matters more than yellow. Red can stop you getting a mortgage or cost a lot, like a lease under 80 years. Yellow is worth asking about, like a home sold at auction with a reservation fee.
A flag isn't a verdict. Tap Why to see what it's based on and what to do.
Flags and questions appear together once we've read the whole listing. Until then you'll see "Reading the listing…".
#Flags from the photos and text
Some flags come from reading the listing's photos and text, such as textured ceilings or plants that look like Japanese knotweed. They always name the photo or quote the sentence. A photo can't prove something; the agent's answer and your own look at the viewing can.
Photos you add yourself aren't read this way.
#Who answers, and when
Before you offer, only three people or places can answer: the agent, your own eyes, and public records. Everything else waits until your offer is accepted. Questions are grouped by when to ask:
- Ask when you book: things the agent can answer on the phone. Up to three, with a short tip underneath when one helps.
- At the viewing: things to look at yourself. If you've only added a past viewing, this is "Next time you're there".
- After the viewing: questions for the agent by email, and things to check on a second visit, such as parking and noise on a weekday evening.
- After your offer is accepted: questions only a surveyor, your conveyancer or the seller's forms can answer. We keep them ready for you.
If we don't know a basic fact, like the tenure or the size, it becomes a question. We don't guess.
#When you have an answer
Tap "Add answer" under a question. Write what you heard or saw. Who answered is already set: the agent for agent questions, you for things you check yourself. Tap it to change.
The answer shows under the question as "The agent said" or "You checked". Tap Edit to change it, or set it back to not answered.
#The agent's reply
After you paste an agent's reply, each question shows what happened: answered, they'll come back to you, they don't know, it comes after an offer, or they didn't answer. "They don't know" isn't a bad sign. Agents often don't have the answer, and some things are in public records you can check.