Understanding the benefits of a Structural Survey for homeowners
A Structural Survey is a home survey designed by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS), the UK’s governing body for residential surveys. It’s the most in-depth inspection you can get and focuses explicitly on structural integrity.
A couple of years ago, the RICS guidelines were updated. We now call the Structural Survey a Home Survey Level 3. You’ll notice both names are used interchangeably.
Organising a survey for your house is simple. After researching and deciding on a chartered surveyor you trust, contact them to organise a date and time that works for you.
On this page, we’ve put together a few thoughts on how Structural Surveys pay off for homeowners.
Issues will be identified before they become severe and expensive
A chartered surveyor will watch for any early signs of severe problems during a Structural Survey. They’ll be watching out for any of the following:
- Subsidence or other structural movement
- Rot or woodworm in timbers
- Cracks in brickwork or stonework
- Signs of undue stress and movement
- Checking for Building regulation compliance
- Checking structural walls
- Lintel damage
- Roof problems
Identifying these issues before they develop will save you a lot of money. For example, replacing a roof beam is much less expensive than repairing or changing the entire roof (although it’s by no means cheap).
You can have the chartered surveyor estimate repair costs as an optional extra. These will be based on local trade availability and rates, so you know what to expect.
You’ll increase your home’s safety and longevity
Your home should be a safe space, both physically and mentally. Knowing for sure you’ll have four walls, a roof, insulation, and working water, gas and electricity are things we all take for granted – until they’re suddenly gone.
A Structural Survey guarantees that your property is safe for you and your family, friends or tenants. If the chartered surveyor does discover problems (or early signs of them), they’ll provide advice on repairs or maintenance plans.
The Structural Survey identifies the issues (if there are any). You should then get quotes from trusted local contractors to assess your options before following through.
The report (which you’ll receive as a PDF) will also contain a risk factor. The higher the rating, the more urgently you should respond.
Structural Surveys potentially help increase your home’s value
A Structural Survey could go a long way in helping improve your home’s market worth. Here’s how.
Say you get a home survey this week. The chartered surveyor identifies early signs of a leak in your roof stemming from woodworm in the beams. This is an expensive repair (plus the survey cost), but it’ll be more than made up for in the increase in property value.
Very few people want to buy a home leaking from the top. It’ll cause damage to areas below it (that is, the entire building), further reducing the market worth. In contrast, a high-quality house has homebuyers competing against each other, pushing the value up.
Of course, exact numbers are impossible to give generically. How much more your home will be worth will depend on the local market, the broader British house price index, and so on.
Ask about GB Home Surveys’ and our Structural Surveys
GB Home Surveys offers Structural Surveys (also known as a Home Survey Level 3) around the country. Our RICS chartered surveyors, employed from our head office in Three Counties, work in small, local teams based in the South-West, West Midlands, and South Wales.
Structural Surveys more than pay for themselves in what they typically uncover. Even if the survey doesn’t find anything, you’ll be reassured that the building is safe and an official document to help you sell it when the time comes.
Structural Surveys could be used for any property. However, we’d particularly recommend them if you’re the owner of one of the following:
- Barn conversions
- DIY builds
- Renovations
- Extended properties (particularly if planning permission wasn’t granted)
- Historic properties (the older they are, the more likely you are to run into structural issues)
- Seaside cottages
- Anywhere in a known subsidence hotspot
GB Home Surveys can help you out with a Structural Survey. Get in touch with us using the form below, and we’ll get straight back to you.
