*that* not they.....
You might be aware that all is not as black as it appears to be painted in a survey report! Surveyors have to show caution on their findings, so as not to be (dare I say it on here) sued for not pointing out something which 'comes to light' after the purchase goes ahead. If I was to take on board/except all that our survey revealed, I don't think we would have proceeded with the purchase. Of course, the surveyor has to be honest in what he sees, he is working (or should be) for you and your interest alone, not the vendor. He will not be swayed by anything the vendor might suggest or mention to him which reflects on the saleability of the property. He might mentally note all this, but his findings are what he will relay to you. Don't be put off by all that the report says: it has to be critical, and quite often there are ifs and maybe's.
I might be wrong about the time scale, because ours is a very large and old property - not to mention the p**t who lived here and gave the surveyor grief the whole time!
This building had subsidence, some time back but had the necessary ********sorry my mind has gone blank doh! to the term for correcting the problem. Subsidence can make a difference with insurance, as the companies are very wary of it, even as in our case.
Hope this helps xXx