Installing a patio or driveway - You need a Land Survey

by Mohit J. White Hat Link Building Services

When you are thinking of buying a home and you have a structural survey London, it includes the land around the property. With a level 2 survey, an RICS homebuyer report, it looks at the condition of things like the driveway, the patio, whether they need repair, if they are a risk to health and safety because of damage and such. They consider things like gates, fences, outbuildings, rights of way and boundary walls too. The inspection they carry out, is a visual one only, as they do a general walk around outside. If you want to know more detail and how much it would cost to replace the patio, then you would need building surveyors London to carry out the more detailed report, the level 3 Building survey.

Already living in the home

But what some people are not aware of is that once they have moved in, if they make any changes to the home they need a land survey once more. If they renovate the kitchen, put on an extension to the home, or put in a driveway or patio, there are steps to take before the project should start. All of these permanent changes to the property require permission from your local government office. To get that permission one of the requirements is an investigation of the land by a surveyor. Some examples of when you need a land surveyor include;

1. Adding an extension of any kind to the home, whether it is single or double, bottom or top, to the side, out front or to the back. There are issues of property lines to stick to, some places have regulations too on how far from your border or fence the home can reach. If a demolition crew is needed then a survey is essential to make sure it is safe to continue.

2. Putting in a fence of any kind also requires a surveyor. Again this is to prevent issues with boundaries and to prevent legal issues later on when neighbours complain you have taken some of their land.

3. Permanent improvements or changes like a driveway or patio requires surveyor services as it is an extension of the living space and to make sure to the local office that all boundaries and zoning codes are met.

Why you should have a survey before you start

Here are three good reasons to remember that survey.

● Your neighbours stay happy - People do not like it when others around them start putting up constructions and making changes to the land that then encroaches on their own land. Building surveyors London make sure your new driveway stays on your own property and follows the rules for how far it has to be within it.

● Having a survey of the land helps save you time. Construction companies often take this first step before they work, but if you have it done already then they can get going onto the next step sooner. If you do not have one done, and then have the work started anyway, you are likely going to be forced to halt in the middle of the project and remove the work and start the whole thing over, doing it the right way.

● A structural survey London can help reduce potential costs later on if you are forced to halt and undo work.