Party Wall & Property Surveys in Stowmarket

Our surveyor Justin Burns recently completed a Level 2 Homebuyer Report on a modern detached property located to the west of the town.

Some cracking to the property, which appeared to be the result of ground movement, was highlighted. The underlying cause was thought to be either the roots of the tree in the adjacent garden or the poor condition of the adjacent retaining wall but some further investigation was required to confirm. The report set out a clear path for the client to follow if they decided to proceed with the purchase.

Several less significant issues were also highlighted which together would be costly to take care of. Armed with our report, the client was in a good position to renegotiate the sale price and use the saving to complete the remedial works.

The inspection was completed within 3 days of the instruction being confirmed and the report dispatched 3 working days later; our typical turnaround time on Level 2 reports.

Some owners are surprised to to learn that excavating on their own land may require a party wall notice to be served on their neighbours. The key is the distance from the excavation to any adjoining owner shared structure rather than the distance to the boundary – if that distance is less than 3.0m and the depth is greater than the base of the foundations to that shared or adjoining structure (or 6.0m with particular deep foundations) the work will fall within the scope of section 6 of the Act.

Our surveyor Justin Burns recently acted for the adjoining owner in one such case involving a property between Stowmarket and Needham Market. Typical safeguards to reduce the risk of damage will include ensuring that any open trenches are securely propped and covered overnight in case of rain.

The party wall award which was agreed also included obligations on the building owner designed to avoid any adjoining owners suffering unnecessary inconvenience.

In an ideal world we would have a full set of detailed Building Regulation compliant drawings ready to be attached to a party wall award but, for budgetary reasons, that is not always the case. If Building Control are approving the works by inspection, they don’t always require drawings and variable details, such as the foundations depth, can be agreed on site.

Our surveyor Justin Burns was recently presented with some very basic hand drawn plans for a rear extension to a semi-detached property close to the village of Stowupland. As the extension was to be set back slightly from the boundary, it was only the excavation of the foundations that was covered by the Party Wall Act. We were therefore able to utilise the plan that was provided and supplement it with a section from our library to show both the site and likley depth of the excavation (as required).

The building owner was happy that the party wall award was put in place quickly and without the expense of additional drawings commenting that she would definitely use us again.

We recently completed a Survey on a Grade II listed cottage just north of the village of Hitcham which, like many heritage properties, had moved considerably over the years. Walls were significantly out of plumb, floors were sloping and the heads of door frames were noticeably out of level.

Buyers of heritage properties don’t expect everything to be perfectly square, that’s part of their charm, but they do want to know that the movement has not occurred recently. By definition, a survey is a snapshot of a property on a particular day, so does not offer the possibility of monitoring movement but there are generally signs to indicate if it has occurred recently. Cracking is the most obvious example but also gaps between perpendicular walls or between floors and walls. Evidence of movement can be disguised by decorations, but a fresh paint job would be a sign that further investigation may be necessary.

Our client was pleased with the report and appreciated the follow up call to discuss the issues raised.