Building Surveyors: Who, How and Why?

As a specialist commercial property practice, we at Curchod & Co value our building surveyors greatly. They play a vital role in a huge swathe of our services. Indeed, you may be surprised at exactly how many different processes involve a building surveyor. It’s not just for property purchase that we fall upon their skills and knowledge.

RICS

The Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors, or RICS, is, in their words:
“the global professional body promoting and enforcing the highest international standards in the valuation, management and development of land, real estate, construction and infrastructure.”

Building surveyors play a vital role in the process of supplying knowledge in order to achieve the high level of assessment that fulfils the RICS mission for our clients. Through their extensive training, qualifications and knowledge, the surveyors at Curchod & Co can spot potential pitfalls and their implications for both our residential and commercial clients.

Lease Obligations

A lease document is a complex legal document. With very specific requirements for both the tenant and landlord, a building survey is the vital process by which compliance to the lease can be assessed. Of course, a lease refers to the timing and value of rents payable, but arguably more important is the ongoing health of the building itself. Both tenants and landlords maintain specific responsibilities in terms of the maintenance of the building, so a surveyor can assess whether these responsibilities are being met.

End of Lease

Upon the termination of a lease agreement the lease document specifies the condition in which a property must be returned to the landlord. The point of contention between landlord and tenant usually arises in what level of dilapidation can be expected as natural wear and tear. The experience and knowledge of building conditions that our surveyors hold mean that they can accurately assess defects and advise managers when they are processing the end of a lease.

Property Purchase

Whether a potential property purchase is residential or commercial it is vital to assess the condition of a building. Some signs of disrepair may be visible and obvious to any onlooker, but many are only discernible to the expert eye. When advising a client on a property purchase, our building surveyors are able to supply information that can direct not just purchase decisions, but also investment portfolio decisions. With knowledge of building structure and current construction trends our Curchod & Co’s surveyors can accurately assess whether a property is likely to be a sustainable investment.

Property Alteration

From a domestic alteration to a commercial change of use, property alteration requires an accurate building survey. Any potential pitfalls from the development can then be identified. When employed as part of a management project, your Curchod & Co building surveyor can offer solutions to any potential issues. This allows you as a landlord or property investor to proceed with decisions possessing full knowledge of a building and how it is likely to react to any changes or alterations.

Future-proofing

Sustainability is a huge issue in the current commercial and residential building environment and building surveyors are conscious of this. Buildings can be assessed as to how sustainable they currently are or clients advised on infrastructure or structural changes to make. This allows our clients to make more conscientious and long-term decisions for their investments.

Communication

As a building surveyor plays such a vital role in so many aspects of the purchase, lease and development process, communication is a vital skill. Constructing reports for so many different purposes and functions requires comprehensive experience and knowledge. It is not just a document for valuers and mortgage negotiators. At Curchod & Co, we know that information about a building is almost as valuable as the building itself. So we know that you can rely on our hardworking building surveyors.

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