It may not be as exciting as the design of the kitchen or the size of the bedrooms but knowing how your potential new home receives its water, where the public sewers are and how they might affect your plans can be crucial.

All the information relating to the drainage and water systems for each house is contained in a document known as the CON29 DW. We provide this document through our LandSearches team and this is one of the searches your solicitor should ask for - along with the land registry, local authority and other searches - when conveyancing your new home. 

We hold the drainage information for 2.2 million homes in the South East and the water supply information on 1.1 million homes. Agreements with the other water supply companies within our region allow a comprehensive search for every property, residential or commercial, to be produced.

The search will reveal whether there are sewers or water mains running through the garden (38 per cent of homes have public sewers within their boundary and 28 per cent have water mains). The presence of these may prevent the building of extensions or conservatories. The sewers may not be adopted by us, in which case liability for repairs or clearing blockages rests with the householder. These and other potential issues will be revealed in the search.

The CON29 DW is an important search in the conveyancing process, so make sure your solicitor or conveyancer obtains one and then no nasty sewer or water shocks will await you in your new home. For more information go to Property searches