Unfortunately some fee orientated surveyors have learnt to work the system and pitch their fee as high as they can without causing the adjoining owner to challenge it for fear of delaying the works and incurring a further fee. Although the Party Wall Agreement covers many aspects of the work including access, contractor’s insurance and resolving damage one of the clauses which is most contentious relates to working hours. The Award will state the permissible working hours and they may appear quite restrictive at first glance; normally 8.30am to 5pm with no allowance for week-ends or bank holidays. Bear in mind that this clause only relates to the works which are the subject of the award and not the associated works which can carry on outside of these hours.
Party wall issues? Here are some tips: What is covered by the Act? There are certain items of work that you can only be done after notifying the adjoining owners and either receiving written agreement of the neighbour or with a Party Wall Award prepared by a surveyor/s. Notifiable works include (but are not limited to): cutting into a wall to take the bearing of a beam, for example for a loft conversion, inserting a damp proof course, even if only to your own side of a party wall, raising a party wall and, if necessary, cutting off any objects preventing this from happening, demolishing and rebuilding a party wall, underpinning a party wall or part of a party wall, weathering the junction of adjoining walls or buildings by cutting a flashing into an adjoining building, excavating foundations within three metres of a neighbour’s structure and lower than its foundations, excavating foundations within six metres of a neighbour’s structure and below a line drawn down at 45° from the bottom of its foundations.
It might seem obvious, but it’s important that you carry out a thorough clean and tidy of your entire home before the surveyor arrives. Tidying up also gives you the opportunity to rearrange your home so that the significant selling points are exposed for when your potential buyers arrive for the first time. Overall, tidying makes it easier for the surveyor to do their work.
It may be that you have been living in the house for a while and the property has become subject to general wear and tear. Instead of fixing up the property, you have decided to move on. This may decrease the value of your home as many buyers will look at the property as how ‘liveable’ it will be upon buying. If changes need to be made before a potential buyer can properly live in a property, this will make them less likely to buy it.
In addition to the suite of RICS branded HomeBuyer Reports, we are able to offer the excellent jargon-free Home Condition Survey by SAVA. With its simple 1 -3 rating system which is also colour coded to indicate the risk level and the individual items rating it allows you to quickly determine the levels and not get held back by surveyor talk. In addition to this, it comes with helpful fact sheets on electrics, gas and asbestos as required. Discover extra details at Party Wall Surveyor Herne Bay.
Ok so I should never serve notices myself? Actually that is not what we are saying we are just saying weigh up what it could potentially cost you if you get it wrong and if you don’t really understand what your doing its probably cheaper and easier to get a Party Wall Surveyor to do it for you. We have provided DIY templates in the notices section at the top of the website for you to easily fill out if you know what you are doing these are based of Facility of Party Wall Surveyors documents and include our details for easy appointments should you need a party wall surveyor. Should you need an expert Party Wall Surveyor Kent or generally on party wall matters please don’t hesitate to contact us on 01843 808184 or email us at info@home-heroes.co.uk or use our contact form on the website.
Party Wall Surveyors, will deal with disputes by issuing an Award. Party Wall Award(s) are ways of dealing with disputes under the Party Wall etc. Act. At Home Heroes we are able to work on your behalf both before the need for a party wall surveyor by preparing and serving notice and once a dispute is deemed, we have experience working as building owners, adjoining owners and even an agreed surveyor. A HomeBuyer Report with survey: Includes all the features of the RICS Condition Report and advice on defects that may affect the property. A HomeBuyer Report with survey and valuation: Includes all the features of the RICS Condition Report, plus a market valuation and insurance rebuild costs. As one of the most comprehensive surveys available, more often than not a building survey will be requested by potential buyers of your property. It is a wide range inspection of the entirety of a property done in more specific depth than a Homebuyers Report or a Mortgage Valuation. A Building Survey’s purpose is to give a detailed report of the condition of the property in question.
Home and building survey tips and tricks : Watch out for Vegetation, It may be lovely to have wisteria or ivy growing up your home, but beware that vegetation can cause damp in your walls as it retains water and some, like ivy can get in between the mortar joints and cause further damp areas. Electrical and Gas Safety, I don’t know why, but every home I’ve ever bought has had a really useless boiler! As a result I’ve had to fork out between 1,000 to 2,000 to get a new one fitted. So, after having this happen twice, I now make sure I ask the surveyor to have a quick look and then I get a Gas Safety Registered plumber to check it out – albeit at an extra cost of up to 75. However, this has saved me over 10,000 due to the number of properties I’ve bought over the years! See extra details at https://www.home-heroes.co.uk/.