Inspection Flashcards
What reasons may a surveyor carry out an inspection?
- Valuation purposes
- Purchase and sale
- Leasing and letting
- Business rates
- Estate Management
What would you consider prior to inspecting a property?
The reason for the inspection
* The purpose of the client instruction can mean the nature of the inspection undertaken can be different.
- A correct understanding of what the client requires will ensure you undertake the correct type of inspection.
Are you competent to inspect?
* An essential part of being a professional is knowing your limitations. It is important that you objectively review the client’s instruction and determine if you are competent to undertake the inspection.
- For example, if you are a Registered Valuer, are you necessarily competent to inspect a property for Estate Management purposes?
Do you have appropriate Professional Indemnity Insurance?
* You may be competent to undertake the inspection, but does the terms of your PII cover permit you to undertake it? If not, you may not be covered.
Have you undertaken a risk assessment?
Surveyors can be asked to inspect properties in all sorts of locations and conditions, often alone or meeting a person for the first time. A proper pre-inspection risk assessment is something that can help to identify and mitigate potential risks to you as an individual.
Access arrangements
* It is important to find out who has arranged access for you and with whom so that it is as easy as possible, and you know who you are expecting to meet
What equipment will you need to inspect?
* Correct identification of the equipment you need to effectively and safely inspect the property will be both the safest and commercially efficient.
Terms of Engagement
* Ensure that your terms of engagement accurately record what you have agreed to do (or not!)
Inspection Equipment and Health and Safety
What items should you take with you?
PPE:
Safety helmet
Goggles
Respiratory face mask
High Viz jacket
Clothing / Sun cream
Safety gloves
Capped boots
Camera – always take a photographic record of internal and external inspection.
Notepad – in case of technical failure or somewhere where electronic devices are not permitted. As an RICS member it is important to keep a paper trail
Mobile – charged with office and colleagues numbers
Disto – good level of battery and recently used for accuracy
Title Plans
Floor plans if provided
How would you carry out a risk assessment?
- Identify the hazards
- Decide who might be harmed and how
- Evaluate the risks and decide on precautions
- Record the findings and implement them
- Review the assessment and update if necessary
- Advise all those affected of the outcome of the assessment and methods of work, or other control measures necessary, to minimize or eliminate the risk.
Tell me about RICS “Surveying Safely”
The RICS Surveying Safely outlines
- Assessing Hazards and Risk
- Put the inspection in the diary
- Inform my buddy of all inspection details
- Wear PPE if needed
- Sign in and out of a construction site
- Consider if it is safe to inspect alone
- Consider risk assessment and desk top study
What would you consider when inspecting the local area?
- Location of property
- Aspect
- Facilities (including public transport, businesses, use types nearby)
- Any contamination? Hazards?
- Is there flooding nearby?
- Power lines? Electricity substations
- Note any potential comparable evidence, for sale / let boards
What would you consider when carrying out an external inspection
- Method of construction?
- Condition of exterior, what state of repair is it in?
- Car parking available?
- Access to property?
- (Commercial – loading arrangements)
- Any defects?
- Any structural movement?
- Check that the site boundaries match title plan.
- Planning consent
- Listed
What would you consider when carrying out an internal property inspection?
- Layout.
- Specification.
- Any defects?
- Services available – note age and condition.
- Note statutory compliance – asbestos, building regs, H&S, fire safety. Also, for resi, CP12 gas certification from boiler. Requirement for EWS1?
- Fixtures and fittings, any improvements carried out?
- Compliance with lease obligations.
What normal precautions would you take when undertaking an inspection of a vacant building for a client?
o Tell where and when you are going
o Check calendar up to date
o Call when you arrive and leave – buddy system
o Research the area first
What goes into your inspection report?
- Date
- Name
- Tenant
- Demise
- External condition
- Internal condition
- Common parts
What are the Health and Safety requirements as set out in the RICS surveying safely 2018?
- Assessing Hazards and Risk
- Put the inspection in the diary
- Inform my buddy of all inspection details
- Wear PPE if needed
- Sign in and out of a construction site
- Consider if it is safe to inspect alone
- Consider risk assessment and desk top study
What is the difference between steel and concrete frame?
Steel - Less columns, wider span between columns
Concrete - More columns, lower floor heights and shorter span between columns
How do you confirm the construction method and date of a building?
- Check the architects drawings
- Record of practical completion
- English heritage
What is a solid wall construction?
- Simplest type of wall construction
- Solid brick work with headers
- Normally one brick thick
What is a cavity wall construction?
- Two layers of bricks held with metal ties
- Cavity may be filled with insulation
- Air holes may be evidence
What are typical building defects?
- Subsidence – caused by loss of support below
- Wet Rot
- Dry rot
What causes condensation?
- Lack of ventilation
- Sings include mould and steaming water on windows
What should you do if you identify a defect whilst carrying out an inspection?
- Take a photograph
- Try and establish the cause
- Inform your client of your investigation
- Recommend specialist advice
What signs of contamination should you look for?
Evidence of:
* Chemicals
* Oils
* Subsidence
* Underground tans
* Dead vegetation
* Land fill
What are the different types of fit out?
- Shell and core
- Cat A
- Cat B
- Cellular office
What is the institutional specification for a retail unit?
Steel or concrete frame
Services capped off
Concrete floor
No suspended ceiling
What is the specification of a Grade A office building?
New office are constructed of either steel or concrete frame
Full access raised floors
Carpeting
Ceiling height 2.6m
Suspended ceilings
Air con
Double glazed windows
Passenger lifts
Good natural light
What is the specification of a Grade A industrial space building?
Concrete frame
Insulation steel cladding walls and roof
Minimum 8m eaves height
10% roof light
Approx site cover 40%
Electrical full height loading doors
What is solid wall construction
no cavity, stretcher and header formation
What is cavity wall construction
two layers of brickwork tied together with metal ties with a cavity that may be filled with insulation. no headers used.
Three common causes of defect
Subsidence - downward movement of cracking cause by loss of support of site beneath foundations
Water (damp)
Wet Rot - caused by damp and timber decay, wet soft timber, high damp meter reading, musty smell.
Dry Rot (inside by fungal attack) orange fruiting bodies, cuboidal cracking, dry crumbling timber.
Outline the steps you took when you identified a building defect
- photograph the defect
- try to establish the cause whilst on site
- inform client of investigations
- recommend advice from a building surveyor or structural engineer if movement.
What is the typical construction of a shop?
- steel or concrete frame
- services capped off
- concrete floor
- no suspended ceiling
- left in shell condition ready for tenant fit out
What is the current institutional specification for offices?
- full access raised floor with floor boxes
- ceiling height of 2.6 to 2.8m
- air conditioning and double glazed windows
- ceiling void of 350mm
- 1 cycle space per 10 staff, 1 shower per 100 staff
What is the typical construction of an industrial unit?
- steel portal frame
- steel cladding walls and roof
- minimum 8m eaves height
- minimum 30 KN / sq m floor loading
- full height loading doors
- main services capped off
- LED lighting
