Isn't the condition report enough?
It's a good start, and you should read every page of it. But three things about it are easy to miss.
The seller orders it. In one report I read this spring, the seller's own answer to "How did you find the building surveyor?" was that the estate agent had asked an insurance company to find one. That's normal and perfectly legal. The surveyor is state-authorised (beskikket) and has to be impartial, but nobody in that chain was hired by you.
It only covers what the surveyor can see. The report is limited to visible damage, or damage the surveyor can check with simple tools. Every report lists what the surveyor does not look at: whether the electrics and plumbing actually work, normal wear, where the house sits on the plot, the layout, and whether the building is legal, apart from obvious breaches. Damage that is normal for a house of that age and type is left out on purpose.
It moves the risk to you. When the seller hands over a valid condition report and electrical report and offers to pay half of an ownership insurance (ejerskifteforsikring), the seller is freed from the normal 10-year liability for hidden defects. The insurance then covers hidden damage, but not anything already described in the reports. So everything written in the report is, in practice, yours from the day you sign.
The condition report is valid for 6 months, the electrical report for 12.
What a normal-looking report can leave open: one real example
This spring I went through the documents for a 1969 bungalow in Aalborg Øst. The report wasn't alarming: seven damage items, three of them described as having no real significance. Read closely, it still left four questions a buyer should close before bidding.
The flat roof. The tar-felt roof had large dips where water collects in the middle, especially over the living room, with a stated risk of moisture getting in. The date the roof was laid was unknown, so the report couldn't give a remaining lifespan. There was no access to a roof space either, which means nobody had looked at the structure under it.
The walls. Cracks in the brickwork in several places. The seller wrote that small settlement cracks had been there since they took over the house in 2003 and hadn't developed since. That may well be true. The seller's answers in a condition report explicitly carry no guarantee, though.
The bathroom. Floor tiles poorly bonded around the shower drain, with a risk of water getting into the floor below. The floor drain under the sink wasn't inspected at all because it was covered.
The drains. Not assessed, and the report says so outright: a sewer inspection isn't part of the house inspection scheme, and the surveyor who writes the report isn't qualified to do one. The report's own notes for this house type add that the oldest drains are often concrete or glazed clay pipes with little life left if they haven't been replaced.
None of this means "don't buy". It means four questions. When was the roof laid? Who can look under it? Has the drain been TV-inspected? What would the bathroom floor cost to redo? The answers change what the house is worth to you, and the report on its own doesn't give them.
What are your options for checking a house in Denmark?
Roughly five. They compete with each other less than it seems, because each one looks at something different.
| Option | What it checks | Typical price, 2026 | Visits the house? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reading it yourself | Condition report, electrical report, energy label, BBR, land register, flood and radon maps | Free, but an evening per house | Only at the viewing |
| BoligCheck (us) | All the documents together, in your language: damage, hidden and long-term costs, price, questions for the agent | 299 kr, or 599 kr for three homes | No |
| Building surveyor (byggesagkyndig køberrådgivning) | A physical walk-through, usually with you there, often including a review of the condition report | About 2,800 to 4,000 kr | Yes |
| Property lawyer (boligadvokat) | Purchase agreement, deed, conditions, the lawyer's reservation | Fixed packages from about 2,000 kr to around 10,000 kr | No |
| Ownership insurance (ejerskifteforsikring) | Pays for hidden damage found later, not for what's in the reports | The seller pays half of the quote they present | No |
Prices vary by firm, house size and region. As two concrete examples: one surveyor firm charges 3,250 kr including VAT for a walk-through of a house up to 99 m², with moisture measurements, thermal imaging or a written report as extras. One lawyer's buyer package costs 4,995 kr including VAT and covers the purchase agreement, a written advice letter and negotiation. I checked these figures in September 2026. Sources are at the bottom.
Do I need a building surveyor if there's already a condition report?
Not always. I'd book one when at least one of these is true:
- The house is older and has a flat roof, a basement or a crawl space.
- The report has "possible damage" items. The report itself says that if you buy without investigating those further, you carry the risk.
- Parts of the house are listed as not inspected, or were covered up during the inspection.
- You plan to renovate and want to know what it will cost before you bid.
For a flat in a well-run owners' association, the association's finances usually matter more than a surveyor's visit. For a house like the 1969 bungalow above, I would book one.
Do I need a lawyer to buy a house in Denmark?
The law doesn't require one, but as a foreigner I would use one. The estate agent works for the seller (who actually works for you when you buy goes through why). The paperwork is also long: one of the large Danish law firms puts the legal documents at typically 160 to 220 pages per property.
The lawyer's most useful tool is the lawyer's reservation (advokatforbehold), written into the purchase agreement. It lets your lawyer approve or reject the deal within a set period. The alternative is the statutory right to withdraw (fortrydelsesret): 6 working days, and it costs 1% of the price if you use it.
Can I get these checks done in English?
The condition report, the electrical report and the purchase agreement are all in Danish. Many surveyors and lawyers speak English in person, but their written reports are often in Danish, so ask before you book. We write BoligCheck reports in Danish, English, Ukrainian or Arabic.
In which order should I use them?
Cheap checks first, on every house you're considering. Expensive checks last, on the one you actually want.
- Read the listing documents yourself, or send us the link for a free quick check of the three things to look at first.
- Get a BoligCheck on the one to three houses you're serious about, so you know what to ask at the second viewing and what the house really costs per month.
- Book a building surveyor for the house you plan to bid on, especially if the report leaves things open.
- Have a lawyer on board before you sign, and make sure the purchase agreement has a lawyer's reservation.
Booking a surveyor for every house you look at gets expensive fast. Skipping the surveyor on the house you end up buying can cost a lot more.
Does the seller have to tell me about old damp or mould?
This comes up a lot in expat forums. The seller fills in a disclosure section (sælgeroplysninger) as part of the condition report, with questions about leaks, damp, cracks and earlier repairs. Two things to know about it. The answers explicitly carry no guarantee. And if the seller used the inspection scheme, they're freed from the normal 10-year liability. They can still be held responsible if they knowingly, or through gross negligence, gave wrong information, for example by keeping quiet about hidden damage they knew about.
In practice: if a disclosure answer matters to you, ask the agent in writing, and ask for any paperwork behind it.
In short
Don't ask "is there a condition report?". Ask "what does the report leave open, and who is going to close it before I bid?" For most houses the answer is a mix of your own evening with the documents, a document check, a surveyor on the one you want, and a lawyer on the contract.
A BoligCheck reads the condition report, electrical report, energy label and listing together and tells you, in your language, what's still open and what it is likely to cost.
Order a BoligCheck - 299 krFrequently asked questions
Is a house inspection mandatory when buying a house in Denmark?
No. The seller isn't required to provide a condition report, but without one (plus an electrical report and an offer of ownership insurance) the seller keeps the 10-year liability for hidden defects. That's why most houses for sale come with one. As the buyer, you're not required to book your own surveyor either.
How much does a building surveyor cost in Denmark?
For a buyer's walk-through (køberrådgivning), expect roughly 2,800 to 4,000 kr. One firm we checked charges 3,250 kr including VAT for a house up to 99 m², with extras such as moisture measurements or a written report on top.
How much does a property lawyer cost when buying a house?
Fixed-price buyer packages range from about 2,000 kr for basic online services to around 10,000 kr for full packages. 4,995 kr including VAT is a typical price for a package covering the purchase agreement, an advice letter and negotiation.
Does ownership insurance cover everything?
No. It covers hidden damage that was there before you took over and that you didn't know about. It doesn't cover anything described in the condition report or the electrical report, normal wear, or conditions typical for a house of that age and type. The seller pays half of the quote they present.
What does BoligCheck do that a surveyor doesn't?
We don't visit the house. We read all the documents together, including the condition report, electrical report, energy label, listing and land register, put a price on what the findings can mean, and write it up in your language. That tells you which questions to ask and whether the house is worth a surveyor's visit. A surveyor looks at the building itself. The two work well together.
