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RICS Chartered Building Surveyors
Do you need advice from a party wall Surveyor? We offer party walls surveys throughout Westminster and the surrounding areas of London.
If you are a building owner or adjoining owner, you can get advice from one of our professional surveyors Located in central London. TJF Chartered Surveyors comprises of Chartered Surveyors seasoned in issues affecting the Party Wall Matters and Party Wall etc Act 1996.
Does the Party Wall Act affect me?
Are you planning on:
- Excavating in the proximity of a building or structure?
- Constructing at or on the boundary with another property?
- Work on any existing ceiling, wall or floor shared with another structure?
If you are, you have to find out if the work you are planning is under the scope of the Act. If it is, then you must notify all those that the Act defines to be “adjoining owners”. Failure to serve the relevant notices can make your project illegal.
When do you need to serve a Party Wall Notice?
If you are planning on carrying out any work involving the party wall or excavating close to the party wall, or within 3 to 6 metres, then you will normally have to notify your neighbour with a party wall notice. For any home projects, you can get a party wall award if you are:
- Digging foundations for an extension
- Installing damp proof courses
- Demolishing internal walls requiring structural support from the party wall
- Converting or extending your loft
Do I need a Party Wall Surveyor?
The response to this question is not direct and relies on how complex your project is concerning the wall, and the cooperation you get from your neighbour. The best way to get a straight answer is through the following steps:
Serve Notice
You must serve your neighbour with a notice that could be through a letter written on a standard form document. You should also enclose a reply letter as well as an envelope to facilitate your neighbour on sending the response after signing. Letting your neighbour know beforehand that they will be getting a notice is helpful to avoid the element of surprise. Besides, you can use the opportunity to assure them that your work will not negatively affect them.
Neighbour’s Reply
You should give your neighbour 14 days to respond to your notice.
Choosing your Party Wall Surveyor
You and your neighbour can decide to pick one party wall surveyor to serve both of you. The surveyor should be impartial and act only on the interest of the wall. If this unfortunately escalates into a dispute, you can each have a surveyor to act in your interest. However, you will have to cater for both surveyors who will make it an expensive option on your part.
What is the Party Wall etc.? Act 1996?
The Party Wall etc. Act 1996 pertains to a trio of different types of work. These include alterations made on or at the boundary of two buildings, any work is done to an existing party wall and excavations near to or underneath any adjoining properties. At Trevor J. Francis, our London based team of professional and experienced RICS chartered surveyors can help you with any party wall surveyor-general queries. Among our many specialities is surveying party walls, so please contact us today by phone or email if you have any questions or require advice about our RICS surveyors’ services. Should you be in London and the surrounding areas and plan to undertake any work to a party wall or any other area within your home that adjoins another building owners’ that pertains to the Party Wall etc. Act 1996, then please get in touch for any surveying advice you may need.
Which Party Wall Notice Do I Need To Serve?
There are three forms of party wall notice that you may be required to serve before you begin any extension, conversion or alteration work to your property. Depending on what work you will carry out, there are periods of statutory notice you must adhere to before starting the work.
Form 1
When you are constructing a new wall to form a boundary, this is known as a Line of Junction Notice and must be delivered one month before work begins.
Form 2
If you are carrying out work to the party wall itself, you will need to deliver a Party Structure Notice. You must provide this notice two months before work begins.
Form 3
The final notice type concerns your planning to dig within three metres of the adjoining property to a depth lower than the foundations or plan to install piled foundations within six metres of the adjacent property. Known as a Notice of Adjacent Excavation, you must deliver this notice one month before work starts.
What Happens After I Serve A Party Wall Notice?
After serving a party wall notice to your neighbour, they may then choose from three options. The first option open to your neighbour is to consent to the work you plan to carry out helpfully.
If this is the case, then the party wall award is unnecessary, and you can carry out the work you have planned without consulting surveyors. It may also be beneficial to prepare a Schedule of Condition to assist you in a claims process situation. This is, however, an optional consideration.
The next option your neighbour may exercise after having the party wall notice delivered to them is to dissent to the proposed works and ask for a party wall surveyor. In this case, a party wall award is necessary, and you will need to hire a party wall surveyor before you carry out the proposed works.
Once the surveying work has been completed and you secure the party wall award, you may carry out any planned work to the specific conditions stated in the award. For example, if you plan to form any trenches for your foundations, the award may require you to install shoring supports temporarily while the work takes place.
The party wall award may also determine that you are responsible for any property damage done to your neighbour’s house or building. If your award states this liability, you may also have to pay for the party wall surveyor’s report fees as well.
After receiving a party wall notice, the final option open to your neighbour is to dissent to the work you plan to carry out and appoint an agreed surveyor. In this case, both you and your neighbour will agree to hire a joint surveyor to inspect your plans and produce a report. A party wall award is required here, despite only one surveyor working on behalf of both parties involved.
Home Buyers Survey
A detailed inspection of a property, providing buyers with essential insights into its condition and potential issues before purchase.Party Walls
As a surveyor, I provide professional Party Wall services, offering expert advice and assistance with agreements.Building Surveys London
We complete extremely detailed building surveys and elemental investigations. We typically support these with annotated photographs and recommendations.
Following an inspection our surveyors will typically discuss their findings by telephone before e-mailing and posting copies of the report to you and your advisers.
We partner with various independent associates, whose combined experience enables us to provide specialist support services and expertise. We typically offer a wide range of services including survey projects for large commercial, historic and listed buildings, but are equally at home with a modest apartment.
We also carry out repair specifications and valuations for traditionally built and prefabricated structures.
Our team can also advise on comprehensive facilities and energy audits and required legislative compliances and environmental services. We offer these services across central London, including Camden, Paddington, Islington, Chelsea and Westminster.
Historic Building Surveys
If you own a listed building or are planning to purchase one, we can offer specialist professional advice on how to manage it. We can advise on the essentials that you require before you buy the building so that you make the best possible decision. We also perform comprehensive surveys before and after you purchase historic buildings.
If you are unsure about any work required for a historic building, that is where we come in. We offer solid, pragmatic professional guidance on how to take care of your building and n how to handle necessary repairs. We can also provide you with building conservation information to ensure that you do the right thing by the building. If there are any previous alterations that you are concerned with, we will advise accordingly.
Our team is committed to giving you the best advice, ensuring that you make the right choices. We visit, survey and report on historic or listed buildings across central London including Bloomsbury, Camden, Westminster and Chelsea as well as throughout greater London and the Home Counties.
Home Buyer Surveys
If you are planning on buying a new home, we can offer you as an an alternative a professional homebuyer surveys as well as specific defect investigations and property valuations. You don’t have to know exactly which services you need, simply get in touch and speak with one of our experienced surveyors.
The Home Buyer Survey & Valuation report was replaced as the recommended homebuyer survey by the RICS homebuyer Report in March of 2010. It is unfortunately often overlooked as it’s not compulsory to the process of purchasing a house. However, it provides a reasonably in-depth insight to the condition of the property and identifying any defects and remedies, saving on repair costs in the future.
Do I need to get a survey?
While surveys are not mandatory, they can provide you with peace of mind when assessing your property. Surveying a property can help you avoid any surprising and costly issues, such as faulty electrics or plumbing, and reassure you that any aesthetic damage is not structural.
While a new property can set you back hundreds of thousands of pounds, spending a few hundred on an independent property survey by an RICS chartered surveyor is well worth the money. The information a chartered surveyor can provide for you may help you in deciding whether to purchase the property or not.
Should there be significant damages to the property, based on the assessments made by a qualified surveyor, you may be able to knock the price it takes to fix these damages from the property’s initial price. Suppose the property you are looking to purchase is ancient, is a listed building, has a thatched roof or timber framing, or you are just unsure about what condition the building is in; you should think about having a survey conducted.
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