27th June 2009, 01:54 AM
Quote:quote:Originally posted by Unitof1
Is there any advantage to the seller/owner of the archaeology that the archaeologists are representing the buyers interests?
Yes. The seller wants to sell potential development land that they own - the buyer wants to be sure that there are no 'buried surprises'.
If you're buying a house you get a survey done to ensure that it is not going to fall down. If you're buying potential development land you want to be sure it is developable. If buyers won't purchase the land without archaeological investigation then there will be a big advantage in agreeing to this.
If the seller has agreed that they will foot the bill for any archaeological mitigation works on the site then there would be a definite advantage for them in pre-sale investigations.
I don't think the owner would be interested in being the "owner of the archaeology" - they are interested in being owners of potential development land. Archaeology is simply a factor that needs to be taken into account when looking at the potential costs/value of the land.