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Residential Building Survey ComparisonWhy are our surveys better than the competition? Below is an example of one of our survey's compared to one produced by a mortgage companies valuation survey. Alternatively, have a look at our 'why use us' page - here. JOB REFERENCE: RESIDENTIAL BUILDING SURVEYOF Modern Purpose Built Flat
FOR Mr and Mrs Modern PREPARED BY INDEPENDENT CHARTERED SURVEYORS FOR ANY HELP OR ASSISTANCE CALL FREE PHONE: 0800 298 5424 or visit our website:www.1stAssociated.co.uk CONTENTS INTRODUCTION REPORT FORMAT SYNOPSIS EXECUTIVE SUMMARY SUMMARY UPON REFLECTION EXTERNAL ROOF COVERINGS, PARAPET WALLS AND ROOF LIGHTS ROOF STRUCTURE AND LOFT SPACE GUTTERS AND DOWNPIPES WALLS EXTERNAL JOINERY {AND DETAILING} EXTERNAL DECORATIONS INTERNAL CEILINGS, WALLS, PARTITIONS AND FINISHES FLOORS DAMPNESS INTERNAL JOINERY TIMBER DEFECTS INTERNAL DECORATIONS THERMAL EFFICIENCY OTHER MATTERS SERVICES ELECTRICITY GAS PLUMBING AND HEATING BATHROOMS AND SHOWER ROOMS MAIN DRAINS OUTSIDE AREAS COMMUNIAL AREAS UNDERGROUND CAR PARKING POINTS FOR LEGAL ADVISOR APPENDICES LIMITATIONS GENERAL INFORMATION ON THE PROPERTY MARKET INTRODUCTIONFirstly, may we thank you for your instructions we have now undertaken a Building Survey (formerly known as a Structural Survey) of the aforementioned property. The Building Survey takes the following format; there is an introductory section (which you are currently reading), which includes a synopsis of the building, and a summary of our findings. We then go through a detailed examination of the property starting with the external areas working from the top of the property down, followed by the internal areas and the buildings services. We conclude with the section for your Legal Advisor and also attach some general information on the property market. We are aware that a report of this size is somewhat daunting and almost off-putting to the reader because of this. We would stress that the purchase of a house is usually one of the largest financial outlays made (particularly when you consider the interest you pay as well). We recommend that you set aside time to read the report in full, consider the comments, make notes of any areas which you wish to discuss further and phone us. We obviously expect you to read the entire report but we would suggest that you initially look at the summary, which refers to various sections in the report which we recommend you read first so that you get a general feel for the way the report is written. As part of our service we are more than happy to talk through the survey as many times as you wish until you are completely happy to make a decision. Ultimately, the decision to purchase the house is yours but we will do our best to offer advice to make the decision as easy as possible. REPORT FORMATTo help you understand our Report we utilise various techniques and different styles and types of text, these are as follows: GENERAL/HISTORICAL INFORMATION This has been given in the survey where it is considered it will aid understanding of the issues, or be of interest. This is shown in “italics” for clarity. TECHNICAL TERMS DEFINEDThroughout the Report, we have endeavoured to define any technical terms used. This is shown in “Courier New” typeface for clarity. A PICTURE IS WORTH A THOUSAND WORDS
ORIENTATION Any reference to left or right is taken from the front of the property, including observations to the rear, which you may not be able to physically see from the front of the property. ACTION REQUIRED AND RECOMMENDATIONS We have used the term ACTION REQUIRED where we believe that there are items that you should carry out action upon or negotiate upon prior to purchasing the property. Where a problem is identified, we will do our best to offer a solution. However, with most building issues, there are usually many ways to resolve them dependent upon cost, time available and the length of time you wish the repair/replacement to last. SYNOPSIS SITUATION AND DESCRIPTIONThis is a duplex apartment with the access at ground floor level situated in a multi occupied apartment block. We are advised that there are twenty-two apartments in total. There are shared secured communal areas and an underground car park with a parking space. The property also has its own private balcony and terrace/courtyard area. We are advised the property was built four years ago by Barclay Homes. We are advised that the property has had a chequered history, which resulted in legal action, by the leaseholders and amendments and modifications to the design. Putting Life into Perspective! These are some of the things that were happening around the time this property was built.
2004 The end of the housing boom (again only history will confirm this) EXTERNAL PHOTOGRAPHS
Front Elevation and Front of Apartment
Communal Area Your parking space 
ACCOMMODATION AND FACILITIESGround Floor The ground floor accommodation consists of:
First Floor The first floor accommodation consists of:
Outside Areas Please see our comments within the Situation and Description section and we would add that we were advised that there is a communal waste disposal area, although we did not gain access to this. From past experience we are aware of the practicalities of waste disposal and drying clothes in the winter months can become an issue! INTERNAL PHOTOGRAPHSThe following photos are of the internal of the property to help you recall what the apartment looked like and the general ambience (or lack of). We have not necessarily taken photographs of each and every room. Ground Floor 
Lounge Lounge 
Kitchen Study First Floor 
Main Bedroom Master Bedroom looking towards the balcony area 
First Floor Bathroom Second Bedroom SUMMARY OF CONSTRUCTIONWhat we could see the property was very limited we have therefore had to make many assumptions based upon our knowledge of this style, age and type of construction. EXTERNAL Main Roof: Believed to be asphalt (assumed) Gutters and Downpipes: Internal (assumed) Walls: Built on a structural frame added with structural
First Floor: Steel joists and floorboard sheets (assumed) SERVICES The Estate Agents advise us that the property has a mains water supply, drains, electricity, gas. The above terms are explained in full in the main body of the Report. We have used the term ‘assumed’ as we have not opened up the structure. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Summaries are dangerous as they try to précis often quite complex subjects into a few paragraphs. This is particularly so in a summary about someone’s future home when we are trying to second-guess what their priorities are, so it is important the Report is read in full. It is inevitable with a report on a building of this nature that some of the issues we have focussed in on you may dismiss as irrelevant and some of the areas that we have decided are part of the ‘character’ of this property you may think are very important. We have taken in the region of 100 photographs during the course of this survey and many pages of notes, so if a comment has not been discussed that you are interested in/concerned about, please phone and talk to us before you purchase the property (or indeed commit to purchasing the property), as we will more than likely have noted it and be able to comment upon it. If we have not we will happily go back. Having said all of that, here are our comments: Generally we found the house overall in average condition, considering the property’s age, type and style. However this is a sweeping statement so we would, in addition, draw your attention to the following and also recommend that you read the report in full. We have divided the Executive Summary into ‘The Good’, ‘The Bad’ and ‘The Ugly’, to help distinguish what in our mind are the main issues. The Good Survey reports are often full of only faults so we have started the report with some good points. The property has its own external areas on the ground floor and first floor. The property has good natural light (to the front of the property). The rooms sizes are slightly higher than would normally be expected and therefore give a feel of spaciousness in our opinion. Considering that there is no natural light to the rear of the property, the design has aided the transfer of natural light to these areas quite successfully. A car parking space (that it always useful anywhere in London!). We are sure you could add other things to this list. The Bad These usually relate to items where the issues/problems are solvable and will require some negotiation or we may just wish to raise points that may be of interest and/or require further investigation. 1)The Roof We haven’t been able to gain access to the roof, although we have managed to view the roof from adjoining properties. From this we could see that there is what is known as a Mansard construction. These type of roofs incorporate a flat roof to the top as no doubt you are aware flat roofs are renowned for problems (even in this day and age). They also have box gutter details to the rear where they meet the roof, which take the water away, which can also cause problems. The reason developer’s use these type of roofs is it allows them to gain planning for top apartments/penthouse suites which of course adds considerable value to a development. Also, cynically, they know any future maintenance/repair problems are your liability! 
This sketch shows the structural frame of the building with a Mansard roof on top. ACTION REQUIRED: We have made enquiries with the managements
company and we are still waiting for their response at the time of dictating
this tape. We were advised however that they have no records of the roof
construction from their estates manager, which seems a very unusual situation
for a property that is only four years old. They should have, at the very
least, have the annual condition report (carried out by themselves). We
are still waiting for their response (and this is the third and final check
of the report). 
This shows a box gutter to a Mansard roof. This is the best view we got of the Mansard roof from the adjoining property. You can see that the box gutters affectively form the balconies to the properties. Please see the Roof Section of this Report. 2) Management Company From the discussions we have with various people throughout the day (which may not be a representation of the cross section of people living in the property). We found that they were generally less than happy with the Management Company. Whilst we are quite use to finding that generally most leaseholders expectations of what they require from a Management Company are quite different to those that the Management Companies actually give. In this instance we found the general opinion to be unfavourable. Our enquiries and calls have not been returned other than to say that they are unable to help. ACTION REQUIRED: Your Legal Advisor needs to make full enquiries to the Management Company. How the property is managed is an essential part of buying a leasehold property. 3) Service Charges and Sinking Funds Service Charge It should be established what the service charges are and what sinking fund has been built up. The service charge would be for day-to-day maintenance issues. An example of this would be maintaining the plants, general cleaning of shared access areas, maintenance of lights and security. We were advised by one of the occupants that he believed that the service charges are in the region of £2,000 (two thousand pounds) per year. From our general experience of these charges this does seem relatively low. ACTION REQUIRED: Your legal advisor needs to establish what is included in the service charge and what the Lease says in relation to increasing the service charge. Sinking Fund The sinking fund – this would be for items of renewal and large items of repair or improvement. Examples of this would be the renewal of the flat roof. ACTION REQUIRED: You also need to obtain information about the sinking fund built up to date and any proposed work – a good Management Company will have the next 20 years planned and be budgeting for this. 4) History of Maintenance/Repair Work We would always recommend that your Legal Advisor obtain a copy of work that has been carried out on this property. From our discussions with yourself and various occupants we believe the property has had a chequered history, including the taking of Barclay Homes to court over various issues. Obviously, we are always concerned when we hear of such problems. Usually, leaseholders only see problems of a superficial nature. In our experience, often the effect is cured rather than the actual cause of the problem. Unfortunately, without having full details, we cannot comment further. ACTION REQUIRED: Your legal advisor to obtain four years history (including whatever they can about the legal case) of the repair work together with proposed work in the future and forward these on to us for comment. 5) Inverted Roof over underground car park The general access areas to yours and adjoining apartments are over the garage area. From what we could see this is formed in an insitu concrete floor, which usually has a waterproof membrane (such as asphalt) and then a layer of insulation and the paving slabs that you can see when you access your property. We have personally had bad experience with this type of roof and it is simply more cost effective to replace the entire roof structure than to try and find the roof leak area. This can be a very costly exercise.
The problem with this type of roof is that if there are any problems they are very difficult to find. ACTION REQUIRED: We noted on the paved area just outside your door, crosses on some of the slabs. This may be nothing to worry about but we still feel your legal advisor should specifically request if there are any problems with regard to the roof/underground garage in your area. 
The paving slabs just outside your area with the crosses on them, although you cannot see these in the photo 6) Structural Insulation Panels The property has been built, we believe, on a frame using structural insulation panels (known as SIPs) as the outside cladding rendered finish. We feel in England we still do not fully understand the long-term implications of using this type of construction. We have personally been involved in using it on hotels. Our experience has been that there is a general lack of knowledge of this type of construction within the UK construction industry, although this is quite a wide sweeping statement to say the least! Bearing in mind the problems that have already risen in this property, we thought we would bring this to your attention. We physically couldn’t see any issues looking at the joints on the property, although obviously much of it was hidden from view. 
ACTION REQUIRED: Your legal advisor to establish what sort of workmanship/manufacturers guarantee is available with regard to structural insulation panels. We would be particularly interested to see the detailing at roof level and also the detailing where it butts the adjoining traditional brickwork constructive properties. This is the type of structural frame that the structural insulation panels will be hung from. 7) Smoke Alarms/Fire Alarms Within the property we noted some smoke alarms/fire alarms. Every concern in multi occupied properties is that fire alarms are integrated with each apartment therefore if there is a fire in the adjoining apartment you will be aware of it. We are also concerned with this sort of arrangement that the alarms are regularly tested. We talked to a few of the residence who advised that they had never heard the alarms. However, it may not be unusual as usually the alarms are tested during work hours to disturb as few people as possible. ACTION REQUIRED: Your Legal Advisor to confirm that the fire alarm system/smoke alarm system is integrated with the entire apartment block and that it is regularly tested. The best way to do this is to ask for a copy of the testing records. DIY/Handyman Type Work Normally, in this section we advise of DIY type work. As the property is leased most of these will be carried out by the Management Company and recharged to you in the form of a Service Contract. Purchase Price We have not been asked to comment upon the purchase price in this instance, we have however referred you to sources of general information on the housing market within the Information on the Property Market Section, which can be found in the Appendices at the end of the Report. Every Business Transaction has a Risk Every business transaction has a risk, only you can assess whether that risk is acceptable to you and your circumstances. You should now read the main body of the Report paying particular attention to any “ACTION REQUIRED” points. Estimates of Costs Where we have offered an estimate of building costs please remember we are not experts in this area. We always recommend you obtain quotations for the large jobs before purchasing the property (preferably three quotes). The cost of building work has many variables such as the cost of labour, we are currently using up to £75 per day for unskilled labour up to £200 per day (for an accredited, qualified, skilled tradesman. Other variations include the quality of materials used and how the work is carried out, for example off ladders or from scaffold. If you obtain builders estimates that vary widely, we would advise the work is probably difficult or open to various interpretations and we would recommend a specification is prepared. It would probably be best to supervise the work if it is complex, both of which we can do if so required. SUMMARY UPON REFLECTION
The Summary Upon Reflection is a second summary so to speak, which is carried out when we are doing the second or third draft a few days after the initial survey when we have had time to reflect upon our thoughts on the property. We would add the following in this instance: We do feel further investigation is required, we still have not had a response from the Management Company and would specifically like to see a history of what has occurred at the property. This should be available from a good Management Company and just importantly they should have also looked at the future maintenance requirements of the property. This dictates the level of sinking fund. We would ask that you read the Report and contact us on any issues that you require further clarification on. MORE ABOUT THE REPORT FORMATJust a few more comments about the Report format before you read the actual main body of the Report. TENURE – LEASEHOLD (OR AS GOOD AS)We have assumed that the property is to be sold long leasehold, with no unusual or onerous clauses and that vacant possession will be available on completion. Your Legal Advisor should confirm that this is the case. ESTATE AGENTS – FRIEND OR FOE?It is important to remember that the estate agents are acting for the seller (usually known as the vendor) and not the purchaser and are therefore eager to sell the property (no sale – no fee!). We as your employed Independent Chartered Surveyor represent your interests only. SOLICITOR/LEGAL ADVISORTo carry out your legal work you can use a solicitor or a legal advisor. We have used both terms within the report. TERMS OF ENGAGEMENT/LIMITATIONSThis report is being carried out under our terms of engagement for Residential Building Surveys, as agreed to and signed by you. If you have not seen and signed a copy of our terms of engagement please phone immediately. OUR AIM IS ONE HUNDRED PERCENT SATISFACTIONOur aim is for you to be completely happy with the service we provide, and we will try and help you in whatever way possible with your house purchase - just phone us. THE DETAILED PART OF THE REPORT FOLLOWS, WORKING FROM THE TOP OF THE PROPERTY DOWNWARDS
Front Elevation EXTERNAL
ROOF COVERINGS, PARAPET WALLS AND ROOFLIGHTS 
ROOF COVERINGSThe Roof Coverings and Underlayers section considers the condition of the outer covering of the roof. Such coverings usually endure the extremes of climate and temperatures. They are susceptible to deterioration, which ultimately leads to water penetration. The underlayer’s function is to minimise wind and water damage. Dependent upon the age of your property this may or may not be present, please read on: Roof The property has a Mansard roof. From what we could view from the adjoining property there is a box gutter detail around the edge of it with a parapet wall, which effectively forms the edge of the terrace/balcony to the penthouse suites. In our experience these parapet walls can be a problem depending upon how they are tied into the main structure of the property. We dealt with a parapet wall problem literally a street away from this property that involved the entirety of the property being scaffolded to amend the parapet wall detail. From memory this property had been refurbished within the last ten years to! Without accessing the roof we cannot categorically confirm whether this is in good condition or not. From our viewpoint we were unable to establish what materials have been used but we would take an educated guess that asphalt has been used on the roof and that structurally insulated panels have been used on the walls. The same material that has been used on the main part of your property. Unfortunately we were not able to see anything on the property on the roof directly above your apartment and approximately 60 percent of the roof to the apartments in front of yours. We have made our best conclusions based upon what we could see; however a closer inspection may reveal other defects. 
These walls form the parapet walls An example of efflorescence. Please see to the roof structure although not to the Executive Summary for further your roof structure. From what we comments. could see. In both cases, if you closely as the brickwork you can see efflorescence. This is normally due to dampness getting into the brick wall one way or another. We would comment, after four years the parapet wall really should have dried out by now and we suspect that there is some dampness getting into the structure. Efflorescence Defined This is where salts appear on the surface of the brickwork in a white dust or crystal formation ACTION REQUIRED: Due to the efflorescence we would recommend that the Management Company is asked to provide details of the parapet walls and forward these to us for our comments together with their general comments about the future work on the parapet walls. Please see our comments within the Executive Summary. Roof Lights The property has purpose made roof lights. We much prefer the dome variety of roof lights, as these do not allow water to sit on the roof light. As you can see our view was limited. We would add that it seems inevitable that the roof lights will sooner or later leak! If this doesn’t occur then they seem prone to condensation. 
Apologies for using the same photo again but it shows the roof lights well. We much prefer the dome style of roof light, as this does not allow water to sit upon it. These are generally used on modern properties. Finally, we have made our best assumptions on the overall condition of the roof coverings, parapet walls and roof lights from the parts we could see (Approximately 40 percent of the adjoining development roof and none of your roof!) The inspection was made from adjoining property’s fire escape using a x16 zoom lens on a digital camera. A closer inspection may reveal latent defects. ROOF STRUCTURE AND LOFT  (ALSO KNOWN AS ROOF SPACE OR ATTIC SPACE)The roof structure or framework must be built in a manner which is able to give adequate strength to carry its own weight together with that of the roof covering discussed in the previous section and any superimposed loads such as snow, wind, foot traffic etc. Main Roof Structure Unfortunately, we were unable to gain access to this roof despite our best efforts. We did literally ring everyone within the Enclave Court Development and were unable to gain access. Having said that, from what we can see from the adjoining property this type of roof generally does not have access voids. Taking an educated guess we would expect to see a steal frame construction. This is a relatively lightweight construction, which sits on top of the main property. Alternatively, there may have even been a timber construction with some of the main members being in steel. BOX GUTTERS AND DOWNPIPES
The function of the box gutters and downpipes is to carry rainwater from the roof to the ground keeping the main structure as dry as possible. Defective box gutters and downpipes are a common cause of dampness that can, in turn, lead to the development and deterioration in the structure. Regular inspection and adequate maintenance are therefore essential if serious problems are to be avoided. We could see no obvious signs of gutters and downpipes to the front or the rear of the property and therefore assume that the gutters are in the form of box gutters and the downpipes are internal. Generally, internal downpipes are not a good idea as if they leak it is hard to locate where they are leaking and also you have to open up the structure to identify the area that is causing the problem. Often this can be quite some way away from the actual water staining! We believe the reason why there is no visible guttering to this property is because the structural insulation panels do not allow gutters and downpipes to be fixed to it; therefore they have used a design using internal downpipes. Finally, we have viewed the drainage from ground level. As it was not raining at the time of the inspection it is not possible to confirm 100 per cent that the rainwater installation is free from blockage, leakage etc. or that it is capable of coping with long periods of heavy rainfall. Our comments have therefore been based on our best assumptions. WALLS
External walls need to perform a variety of functions. These include supporting upper floors and the roof structure, resisting dampness, providing adequate thermal and sound insulation, offering resistance to fire and being aesthetically presentable. Structural Insulation Panels (SIPs) From the outside of the property it looks to be a rendered property. However, upon closer inspection and tapping of the structure it was found that structural insulations panels have been used which has been coated with a render with a slight texture. From our experience, this type of finish generally comes with some sort of warranty – usually a twenty-year warranty. ACTION REQUIRED: Your Legal Advisor to investigate this further. The reason why structural insulation panels are used is because the insulation board can be installed directly to the frame without any drying time as there is when you build with brickwork or render, it is quick to construct, and therefore the quicker return on any capital invested. Finally, it is cheaper to build with. Within the Executive Summary we have discussed some of the disadvantages. The main one in our opinion is that this material is not tried and tested in the UK environment and also that the UK workforce has not been satisfactorily or suitably trained to install this product as yet (in our opinion). The other area of concern we have touched upon within the parapet wall section is what we would term as detailing. Please see the parapet wall section. Please see the Executive Summary. 
This is the undersides of the floor as can been seen in the car park. It is insulation panel where it adjoins a concrete floor is being utilised typical where there are problems on this type of property. DETAILING Another area of detailing is where the panels meet each other or different materials such as adjacent buildings. Here you need watertight mastic seal that does not perish in the heat or the cold weather. In our experience this seal needs to be checked periodically making sure it has not fowled and then allowing the water into the property. Having said all of that in our experience the problems are normally highlighted relatively early in the life of a property, poor workmanship etc dampness gets in or later on in the property when due to the lack of maintenance (and sometimes lack of understanding of the premises) deterioration occurs. ACTION REQUIRED: Your Legal Advisor to specifically ask the Management Company who they intend to maintain the structural insulation panel. HIDDEN STRUCTURAL FRAME You will appreciate that the structural frame of the property is hidden from our view and we therefore cannot comment on its condition or appropriateness. Finally, the external walls have been inspected visually from ground level and/or randomly via a ladder. Where the structural insulation panels conceal the structural frame, the windows and the door lintels we cannot comment on their construction or condition. Even in buildings this new it is possible that the frame beneath it may be deteriorating unseen, particularly if in contact with dampness. Our comments have been based upon how the structural insulation panels look and have been finished. We have made various assumptions based upon what we could see and how we think the structural insulation panels would be if it were opened up for this age, style and type of construction. We are however aware that all is not always at it seems in the building industry and often short cuts are taken. Without opening up the structure we have no way of establishing this. FOUNDATIONSThe foundations function is, if suitably designed and constructed, to transfer the weight of the property through the soil. As a general comment, many properties prior to the 19th Century have little or no foundations, as we think of them today, and typically a two-storey property would have one metre deep foundations. As the property is relatively new, it is reasonable to expect Building Regulations approval to have been gained. Over the past thirty or forty years a duty performed by the Local Authority is to check that the property is built to Building Regulations standards. Bearing in mind these factors, and that there are no visible signs to the walls to indicate any problems, we believe your foundations to be sound. London Clay and your Environ Search Report This property stands on London Clay as with the majority of properties in London. It is therefore more susceptible than most should drains leak or trees be allowed to overgrow etc. It is not unusual to have some settlement in London properties. However, from our inspection of the walls we have found nothing unusual. Please refer to our general discussion on Environ Search. Building Insurance Policy You should ensure that the Building Insurance Policy contains adequate provision against any possibility of damage arising through subsidence, landslip, heave etc. Finally, we have not excavated the foundations but we have drawn conclusions from our inspection and our general knowledge of this type, age and style of property. As no excavation has been carried out we cannot be 100 percent certain as to how the foundation has been constructed and we can only offer our best assumptions and an educated guess, which we have duly done. www.1stAssociated.co.uk 0800 298 5424 TREES
Trees within influencing distance of a property can affect the foundations by affecting the moisture content of the soil. None within influencing distance. 
Influencing Distance Defined This is the distance in which a tree may be able to cause damage to the subject property. Please also refer to the External Areas Section. DAMP PROOF COURSEThe Building Act of 1878 required a damp proof course to be added to all newly built properties within the London area. It also required various other basic standards. These requirements were gradually taken up (or should that be grudgingly taken up) throughout London and then the country as a whole, although this took many for it to become standard practice. On modern traditional built properties there should be a damp proof course (DPC) and good building practice dictates that a differential of 150mm (6 inches) should be maintained between the damp proof course and ground levels. In this case, the property is built partly underground, where the car park is located and above ground where the apartments are. As we would expect, there are no obvious signs of damp proof course being visible in this instance due to the form of construction. However, we would only expect building control to only pass drawings with a damp proof course and also to have checked that it has been built in. The need for your attention is drawn to the section of the report specifically dealing with dampness. ACTION REQUIRED: Your Legal Advisor to confirm that Building Control has signed off this entire property. This will mean that they have approved and inspected the drawing detail. Underground Car Parking Area We would however draw your attention to the underground car park where we noted areas of the walls have been rebuilt, may be due to poor drainage as some of them appear to be around drainage outlets. By poor drainage we mean leaking drainage or it may be due to water penetration in this area. In our experience the only way to prevent damp getting in to an underground area is to have a damp proof membrane on the outside of the structure. This means that any water pressure pushes the damp proof membrane against the structure and seals it. You will appreciate that without literally digging up around the underground car park or seeing details of the original drawing we cannot see if there is a damp proof membrane in there. However, from what we could see the garages are not excessively damp and are suitable for there purpose. 
Here you can see some rebuilding has been done to the block work or even repair work. Finally, sometimes it is difficult for us to identify if there is a damp proof course in a property. We have made our best assumptions based upon our general knowledge of the age, type and style of this property. EXTERNAL JOINERY
The external joinery part of this section covers the windows and doors. It is not strictly speaking external joinery in that it is not timber. Windows and Doors The property has tall double-glazed windows. The double-glazing that has been installed is fairly wide i.e. the gap between the front glass and the rear glass and therefore indicating that the glazing will give not only thermal properties but also sound insulation. We also noted a trickle vent to the outside, which again indicated that it is of a good quality. We would expect this type of double-glazing to last in the region of ten to twenty years, the main defect being the seal of the double-glazing unit. Trickle Vents Defined Small vents to the windows to allow air movement inside the property to stop a build up of fumes or humidity. Solar Gain You have particularly large areas of glazing to this property. With regard to solar gain it is very difficult to comment. We discussed that with yourself and neighbouring properties the aspect that this building faces and does enjoy the benefits of a lot of sun. This may in turn mean that there is considerable heat gain. The way around this is by adding full blinds. We did note a fan to the ceiling roof. Finally, we have carried out a general and random inspection of the external joinery. With the windows and doors we have usually opened a random selection of these during the course of the survey. In this section we are aiming to give a general overview of the condition of the external joinery. Please also see the Internal Joinery section. EXTERNAL DECORATION
The external decorations act as a protective coat for the building from the elements. Where this protective covering has failed, such as with flaking paintwork, the elements will infiltrate the structure. This is of particular concern as water is one of the major factors in damage to any structure. This will be a matter for organisation by the Management Agency and recharged to your self. ACTION REQUIRED: Your Legal Advisor to confirm when they anticipate external re-decoration and if an appropriate sinking fund is being built up to pay for this. If we get the information from the Management Company with regard to future works it should include for works to the external of the property, the costs associated to this should have been built up within the sinking fund. Whilst we have referred to your Legal Advisor many times in gathering information, we are more than happy obtaining the information ourselves, it is just from our personal experience it seems that a formal enquiry from a Solicitor seems to be more appropriate in this case. Finally, ideally external redecoration is recommended every four to five years dependent upon the original age of the paint, its exposure to the elements and the materials properties. Where painting takes place outside this maintenance cycle repairs should be expected. Ideally redecoration should be carried out during the better weather between mid-April and mid-September. Please see our comments in the External Joinery section. INTERNAL CEILINGS, WALLS, PARTITIONS AND FINISHESIn this section we look at the finish applied to the structural elements such as the plasterwork applied to the ceiling joists, walls or partitions, together with the construction of the internal walls and partitions. Ceilings From our visual inspection of the ceilings and our general knowledge of this age and type of construction we believe that the ceilings are plasterboard. These looked in average condition. Plasterboard Defined The usual name for Gypsum plasterboard which is building board with a core of aerated gypsum, usually enclosed between two sheets of heavy paper, used as a dry lining. Internal Walls and Partitions We have carried out a tap test to the internal walls (this is not rocket science, it is literally tapping the walls and listening for the sound made) and found them to be studwork walls and fairly lightweight, which is common in modern construction (or where there has been an alteration). You may find some noise transfer between rooms. Perimeter Walls The type of construction that has been used in this property is dry lining used internally on many of the walls. It is likely that there will be insulation behind this for both thermal and noise properties. The dividing walls between the properties, we noted have more of a solid sound, we would therefore take an educated guess that these are built of some type of thermal block, which again not only has thermal properties but also has insulation properties. 
Dry Lining Defined (Modern Properties) Within modern properties, dry lining is a technique used on what are known as non-traditional housing such as timber frame and proprietary systems. This will consist of timber battens, which are lined with a plasterboard. Finally, ceilings, walls and partitions have been inspected from floor level and no opening up has been undertaken (unless permission has been obtained by yourselves). In some cases the materials employed cannot be ascertained without samples being taken and damage being caused. We cannot comment upon the condition of the structure hidden behind plaster, dry lining, other applied finishes, heavy furniture, fittings and kitchen units with fitted back panels. FLOORS |
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We utilise photographs
to illustrate issues or features. In some photographs a pencil has been
used to highlight a specific area (with this property we have taken approximately
one hundred photographs in total and we have enclosed a sample of these
within the report). 
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